His Angel Bunny
by LumiOlivier
Summary: When Angel goes into work on her day off, she just wants to throw her head against the wall. Until she sees a cute boy with a face full of metal and a heart full of sadness. She had to do something about it. Little did she know, that would lead to the greatest domino effect adventure of her life.
1. His Name is Noiz

**A/N: Hi, guys! I am spoiling you guys lately! A new chapter for a different story Monday through Friday? You're welcome. :3 So, Dramatical Murder. Yes. I'm that kind of fangirl. I've watched the anime over and over and over again. I've seen the playthroughs and screenshots and I know what it's all about. Hell, it's sparked some naughty dreams…But when I recently watched the anime this last time around, (Backstory. I go about six months in between my viewings of Dramatical Murder and when I do, I spend an entire day binging it because why not?) I forgot how much Noiz's backstory hurt me. And in that moment, I knew I had to do a reader comfort fic for him. Now, this takes place a few years down the road after the anime. And I had to do something that, as a fangirl, is rather despicable. I won't tell you here because spoilers. If this one gets the nice amount of traffic, I may do one for my little baby Clear, too, after this. So! I'll shut up and you'll get reading. Sound good?**

Work. Boring. Mundane. About as much fun as working at a small grocery store can be. It was my day off, but when I got the phone call saying that bitch Kyu called in with immobilizing cramps that just so happened to come on the day after her bachelorette party, who are they going to call? The one that isn't supposed to come in today, but will anyway because she's the boss's doormat, that everyone assumes doesn't have anything better to do.

I stood at my register, mindlessly scanning people's items, thinking about the long list of better things I had to do today. But no. I got to work on my day off. However, with the last customer of my shift, things started looking up.

This guy was really cute, even with all the hardware in his face. I tried to nonchalantly do a count of how many piercings this guy had without him realizing I was staring. After the death glare, I lost count at six. I went back to paying attention to his items. Dear God. Two gallons of rocky road and half a dozen frozen pizzas? Maybe he's having a party.

No. Going by the quick death glare and the look on his face that suggested he wanted to swan dive from a bridge, he was eating his feelings. I knew the feeling all too well, considering it was me just a couple weeks ago. After finding my neighbor under me on top of my boyfriend. This guy just got dumped.

"Are you ok?" I asked.

"Fine," he grumbled.

"Are you sure?" I worried, "I don't judge."

"I can't eat my feelings in peace?" he snapped.

"Forgive me if it's not my place.," I pointed out, "You look like you just lost your best friend."

"I did," he sighed, "My boyfriend broke up with me. I'd rather not talk about it with some random girl behind the counter."

"I'm sorry…" I kept my head down, "Mine just cheated on me a couple weeks ago. I understand what you're going through."

"What good is that going to do me?"

"I know how much it hurts," my heart broke, "And if you're going to eat your feelings, I suggest you try rice. It fills your stomach faster, so you don't overeat."

"I don't have a rice cooker," his expression lightened a bit. I genuinely felt bad for this guy. I did all I could to keep myself from jumping over the counter and giving him a hug. So, instead, I did the next best thing.

"Here," I took his receipt out of the printer and wrote my phone number down, "I have a rice cooker. If you want to eat your feelings and talk, give me a call."

"And if I don't?"

"You have my number for when you do," I smiled a little.

"Thank you," he looked away, "I could use some rice now…"

"I get off work in about ten minutes," I told, "My apartment's just down the street."

"Think you could use someone to walk you home?" he offered, "I'll wait."

"I'd love that," the butterflies stirred deep in the pit of my stomach, "Hold on. I never caught your name."

"Shouldn't you introduce yourself first?"

I handed him his receipt, "I'm Angel."

"Thank you, Angel," he took the paper from my hand and started walking out, "I'll be waiting."

"Wait a minute!" I squeaked, "You never told me your name!"

"It's Noiz," he waved behind him, walking out the door.

Noiz…His name was Noiz.

The next ten minute couldn't have gone by any slower. I wanted nothing more than to go back home, boot up my Netflix account, and binge crappy movies with Noiz. We didn't even have to talk. For whatever reason, I had already felt a connection with him in the short time we spoke. Maybe because we're both broken hearted and share the same method of dealing with it. Or maybe because I found him wickedly attractive.

No. At this point, all he needed was a friend, not a rebound. And I was going to be that friend. And who knows? Maybe we'll fix each other. I clocked out, grabbed my purse, and ran outside to find Noiz on the bench out front. I think I may have come off a little too eager because I made him jump.

"You ready?" he asked, approaching me slowly.

"Yeah," I nodded, "Let's go."

 **A/N: I'm sorry. I split Noiz and his boyfriend up. It hurts to split up the OTPs. But the question now…Who, oh, who is Noiz's ex-boyfriend? And as I'm writing this, the ideas happening are both ridiculous with a hint of heart wrenching. I'm excited for this story, you guys. Really and truly. I love my Dramatical Murder boys. I think of them as my own personal harem. And I'm glad I started writing this. To the people that are going to nitpick and bitch about the MC being a girl and Noiz appearing relatively interested, there's a thing called bisexuality. Think about Noiz's backstory. He never really got to explore his sexuality, so please be nice in the comments. Settle thine mammaries. I'll get you your yaoi later on in the story. This is only the first chapter. Also, why it's kind of short. I promise the next one will be longer. See you next chapter! xx**


	2. His Name is Broken

Home sweet home. My apartment may not have been much, but it was home. If I didn't know any better, I'd think this place was just the right level of otaku to scare a man off. Three game consoles on the entertainment center, a bookshelf each for my games, my DVDs, and my manga, my nice computer setup (that I built myself from the ground up). And maybe that's why my jackass ex decided to nail the neighbor. If he can't accept me, I guess he doesn't deserve me. But Noiz…Noiz looked around so content. Like he was so in his element.

"Make yourself at home," I threw my bag on the living room chair.

"It's not much, is it?" Noiz threw himself on my couch.

"No," I turned on my rice cooker, "It's better than the street, though."

I kind of took offense to that a little. I mean, I know he's been through a bit, but I had the decency to let him into my house. The least he could do is not be a complete dick about it. I shook it off and got to cooking. I promised Noiz comfort food. Hell, I could stand some myself. I loved having other people that shared in my pain killing methods.

And when I brought food out, the two of us turned ravenous. I hadn't eaten much anyway, so I had every and all right to be a glutton. The only suck part? Noiz wasn't much for conversation. The sound of a pin dropping would've sounded like an atomic bomb at this point. I had to break the uncomfortable silence or I was going to go nuts.

"Noiz?" I asked, "Do you want to talk about it?"

"There's nothing to talk about," he grumbled, stuffing his face, "He said he couldn't deal with me anymore. He left. End of story."

"He really got to you, didn't he?" I figured. I could see it all over his face. He was holding more back than he was letting on.

"You really want to know?" Noiz snapped, "Fine. He was the love of my life. Aoba was the first person I ever depended on. I guess that was my first mistake. Now, it's back to depending on no one else but me again. Just like it's always been."

In that moment, my heart shattered. I could feel the shards poking at my stomach. So, I acted out of sheer reflex. And I wrapped my arms around Noiz as tight as I could, "I'm so sorry…"

"What the hell are you doing?" he looked down at me latched onto his waist.

"I'm hugging you, Noiz," I explained, "It's called sympathy. You don't need to be alone. Ever. And to prove it, you're staying with me tonight. No, you don't have any say in it."

"So, you're holding me hostage?" he wondered, giving me a look.

"Don't think of it as me holding you hostage," I rolled my eyes, "It'd just be irresponsible to leave you by yourself."

"How?" Noiz scoffed, "How is leaving me to wallow by myself irresponsible?" 

"Because," I snapped, "Whether you choose to acknowledge it or not, you're emotionally fragile right now. Underneath all the cynicism and the sarcasm and the food, there is a sad, broken, miserable person that needs a crying shoulder and a friend. And that's why I'm here, dammit!"

Noiz sat silent in pure shock. I don't think he expected little, sweet, meek and mild me to blow up like that. I didn't even expect me to blow up like that. And what I really didn't expect was him resting his head on my shoulder, "You're right. I have been a little bit of a mess since Aoba left. Like I said, I was all I had until he came along. We met playing Rhyme and the rest is history. What about you?"

"What about me?" I wondered.

"You said you were getting over a break up," Noiz pointed out, "What happened with you?"

"He cheated on me," I told, "I came home from work one night to find him on my couch with my downstairs neighbor. She's moved since then."

"Not on this couch," he cringed, "Right?"

"No," I shook my head, "This couch is relatively new. That couch was doused in gasoline and set on fire."

"A little melodramatic, don't you think?"

"I was pissed!" I giggled a little, "Cut me some slack. And nice attempt at diversionary tactic, Noiz. I applaud your efforts."

"I tried."

"Please," I begged, "Just…Stay with me tonight."

"Alright," Noiz let out a heavy, exasperated sigh, "I'll stay with you tonight. But I have a condition."

"Anything," I chirped, "What is it?"

"You think I could go back to my place?" he requested, "Grab a few things?"

"Fine with me," I allowed, "Do you want me to go with you?"

"If you want."

I grabbed my shoes and my jacket and the two of us took off for Noiz's apartment. We were making progress. I could tell. And at this point, I wasn't sure if it were me helping him or him helping me. Maybe we could fix each other.

"Hey, Angel…?" he asked.

"What?"

"Do you…Do you…"

"Do I what?" I wondered.

"Never mind," Noiz got all flustered, "Don't worry about it."

"Come on, Noiz," I insisted, "Talk to me."

"Would it be alright if…" Noiz turned a bright shade of red, "If I…If I hold your hand…?"

"Really? That's it?" I smiled, taking his hand, "Yes. It's perfectly fine with me."

"You know, Angel," Noiz was a tad on the shaky side as we approached his apartment building, "I really appreciate you doing this."

"It's no problem," I gripped his hand a little tighter, "Are you alright?"

"I will be," he assured, "Can I ask you something?"

"Go ahead."

"Why do you care so much about me?" Noiz wondered, "Earlier today, I was just a complete stranger in the supermarket. Now, you're inviting me into your home? You're coming with me to my apartment? I don't understand."

"I understand what kind of hell you're going through," I explained, "I've always had a caring nature. Ever since I was young. And, to be honest, I thought you were kind of cute, so…"

"And that's enough for you to help me out?" Noiz chuckled to himself.

"Yes, it is."

"And what do you gain from it?" Noiz dug around in his pocket for his house keys.

I rested my head on his shoulder, wrapping myself around his arm, "Hopefully a friend…"

 **A/N: Hi, guys! Well. Looks like Noiz has made a new friend. And they've made it to his apartment. What will they find once they get inside? Who knows? Other than me, of course. Now, I know it's kind of a dead fandom, but if you guys could share the hell out of this? Leave nice reviews? A follow would be nice. I need to boost the traffic on this before I delete the whole works and sweep it under the rug like it never happened. I'll give it one more chapter because I know the next one's going to have some shit hit the fan and it's going to be glorious. See you next chapter. xx**


	3. His Name is Aoba

Noiz pushed his door open and threw his keys on the end table. Awfully bright in here. I could see his eyes twitch as they adjusted to the light. I had a feeling that Noiz's apartment would've been a dark otaku cave. Not really surprised that the walls were covered in computer monitors and towers on the bookshelves.

"I won't be long," he promised, going into his bathroom.

I heard a few footsteps shuffling around that were too light and sporadic to be Noiz. And my body froze a little, "Noiz? You said you live alone, right?"

"Yeah," Noiz yelled back, "Why?"

"Do you have a cat or something?" I wondered, looking around, wiping the layer of dust off the backs of the monitors.

"No."

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught sight of an adorable little black dog. Poor little guy tried to hide from me, but I couldn't help myself. He was just too cute! I got down on my knees, "Come here, baby. I won't hurt you."

"Who are you?" the dog asked. He talked? Must be an Allmate.

"I'm Angel," I introduced myself as he slowly approached me. I extended my hand as a friendly gesture, "What's your name, cutie?"

"Cutie…?" he cocked his head to the side, making me squeal internally. All of a sudden, the precious little dog jumped into my lap and made himself comfortable.

"Yes," I beamed, rubbing his belly, "You're just too precious!"

"Angel?" Noiz called out, "Who are you talking to?"

"This little black dog!" I squeaked, cuddling the Allmate in my arms.

"That might not have been a very good idea, Angel," the dog chastised.

"Ren?" Noiz assumed, coming out of the bathroom. The little dog nuzzled under my hoody, trying to hide, "Ren, is that you?"

"I don't know," I shrugged, "I didn't catch his name."

"Ren," Noiz scolded, "Come out of there right now."

"Ren?" the dog spoke, "I don't know anyone by that name."

"Ren…" Noiz took a more serious tone, "Get out of Angel's hoody now."

"Come on, Noiz," I softened, "Can't you go a little easier on him?"

"No," he growled, "Ren, out!"

"Fine," Ren poked his little head out from the top of my hoody and licked my face, "Thank you, Angel. At least you tried."

"Did you come alone?" Noiz picked him up by the collar.

"No…"

"Noiz…?" a voice came from the bedroom and a blue haired boy came out.

"Oh," Noiz grumbled, "Hey."

"Hi…"

"What are you doing here?"

"I needed to get the last of my stuff," he said, "I was hoping to do this while you weren't here."

"You have it," Noiz looked down at his feet, "Now, go."

His eyes flashed toward me, "Who are you?"

"She's none of your business," Noiz snapped, "Get what you needed and leave."

"Ok…" the boy grabbed his bag, "Come on, Ren."

"Yes," Ren followed closely behind him.

As soon as the door closed, Noiz practically collapsed. He looked exhausted, "Noiz? Are you ok?"

"Fine," he lied.

"Who was that?" my curiosity got the best of me.

"Don't worry about it."

I thought it over for a minute or two. I didn't expect some random guy to get Noiz all worked up like this. And he was awfully familiar with the Allmate that got into my shirt before he did. That could only mean one thing, "That was him, wasn't it?"

"I said, drop it!" he snarled.

"Ok," he made me jump. I could understand why he didn't want to talk about it. I wouldn't want to talk about mine either. Doesn't mean he shouldn't though.

"I'm sorry," Noiz apologized, seeing the error of his ways, "Aoba has that effect on me."

So that was the ex. I had to hand it to him. Noiz had taste. Aoba was kind of hot. And he had an ass for days. DAMN! I wanted to sink my teeth in it. But having Noiz's sloppy seconds? Especially someone that meant that much to him? I couldn't do it in good conscience.

Once we got back to my place, Noiz threw his stuff on the chair and his body on my couch. Poor thing looked like he was shaken to the bone. I had to do something, "Noiz? You ok?"

"I will be," he assured, "Once the adrenaline goes away. And I'm not as pissed off."

"Ok," I sat down on the couch next to Noiz and he used my thigh as a pillow, "Do you need anything?"

"No," he shook his head, nuzzling into me a little more, "I think I'll just go to sleep, if that's alright."

"That's fine," I allowed, moving him off my hip.

"No," Noiz stopped me, "Don't go. Please."

"Alright," I sat back down, "I'll stay."

"Angel…"

"Yeah, Noiz?"

"Why are you so nice to me?"

"Well," I sighed, "Because I like you. We've been over this."

"And all you're wanting to gain is my friendship?"

"Exactly."

"Alright," Noiz settled himself, "Thank you."

"You're welcome," I pulled the throw off the back of the couch and covered him, "Get some sleep, ok?"

"Good night, Angel."

"Good night."

It didn't take Noiz very long to fall asleep. He had a soft, low, grumbly snore in about twenty minutes. And he wasn't letting me go. It was like I was his own personal teddy bear. Something tells me that sleep hasn't exactly come easy for him in the past week.

As he laid on my leg, sleeping soundly, I studied every little inch of his hardened face. This kid had more holes in his face than a slice of Swiss cheese. Of course, it got me curious. And the studs in the back of his neck had me worried. That was a bit extreme for my taste. There was no way he was comfortable with all this metal in his face. I wonder…

One by one, I started pulling out Noiz's piercings. He was sleeping pretty heavy. I'm sure he wouldn't feel a thing. I went with the ones in his ears first, working from the lobes to the cartilage. Then, I took out the ones in his eyebrow…The one between his eyes…The ones in his bottom lip…I wasn't really expecting the ones in the back of his neck. My god, this kid was like a pin cushion.

When I finished, l looked him over once more, putting the assorted rings and bars and studs on my coffee table. It was like he was a completely different person. He didn't look like the Noiz that walked into the store earlier this afternoon that had eaten his weight in white rice on my couch. He looked so innocent. Strange, but innocent.

Noiz stretched a little in his sleep, making his shirt ride up. Sure enough, another ring for me to take out in his belly button. But when I reached for it, I felt him twitch under my touch. Should probably leave that one alone. How many of these things did Noiz have? If he had piercings hiding under his clothes, I wonder what else he had pierced. I ran my hand over his chest over his shirt and found two more in his nipples. Yeah. I think I'm just going to stick with the ones in his face.

Something told me that if I were to go any further, I'd probably find more. But that would involve waking Noiz and that was the last thing I wanted to do. For a brief moment, I shut my eyes. And before I knew it, I was sound asleep, too.

The next morning, I was woken up by Noiz moving around at my hip, "Where the hell…?"

"Well," I rubbed my eyes, "Good morning, Noiz."

"Morning," he grumbled. His face contorted into confusion, "Why am I only feeling my tongue ring? I don't remember taking anything out."

"You looked really uncomfortable last night," I explained, not surprised there was another piercing hiding from me, "So, I took them out."

"And you thought that was ok?" Noiz looked up at me, "I feel naked."

"I'm sorry," I cringed.

"These only come out for airport security," he sat up, putting the metal back into place, "I'll allow it this one time, but don't do it again."

"I'm sorry," I apologized again, "If I knew you were going to freak about it, I wouldn't have done it in the first place. Please forgive me."

"You're forgiven," he settled me, a dirty little smirk creeping across his face, "You didn't find all of them…"

"I didn't know about the one in your tongue," I admitted, "I left the one in your belly button alone. And the ones in your nipples."

"I don't have one in my tongue," Noiz opened his mouth, "I have two in my tongue. You left the ones in my hands alone, too."

"You have them in your hands?"

"Yeah," Noiz showed me, "Five of them."

"What else do you have pierced?" I wondered.

Noiz chuckled under his breath, "That's a story for another day. Now that you're done holding me hostage, I'm going home."

"Ok," I got up and my back popped about half a dozen times. I knew sleeping on the couch was going to be a bad idea, but I wasn't leaving Noiz by himself.

"Thank you," he spoke softly, "For letting me stay last night. I don't think I could've gone back there after what had happened."

"Anytime," I smiled, "Will this be the last time we see each other?"

"We're friends now, right?" he pointed out, "I mean, you did take my piercings out. I didn't even let Aoba do that."

"Really?" I'm kind of surprised that Aoba never touched Noiz's piercings, but the fact that Noiz dropped his name so casually shocked me even more.

"Really," Noiz confirmed, "Then again, I didn't know you were doing it at the time or I probably would've slapped your hands for it. I'll see you later, Angel."

Noiz softly kissed my cheek and took off. I started questioning some things. What were Noiz and I now? How to we progress forward? And who was fixing who?

 **A/N: Alright. You've twisted my arm. I guess I'll post more chapters. To my one follower, thank you. You're wonderful and possibly singlehandedly saved this story. Which is awesome because I have so much more planned for this. And it'll get kind of graphic. And I will admit the whole, taking out Noiz's piercings? I know that canonically he doesn't have his nipples or his belly button, but this is taking place a ways down the road. You can't tell me he wouldn't get more. And I have a bit of a love affair with Noiz's piercings. Seeing him without them makes me so uncomfortable and so cringy. But before I begin to ramble, I'm going to quit while I'm ahead. See you next chapter! xx**


	4. His Name is Yuki

At least I could enjoy a day off. And all with a clear conscience. Noiz was in a better headspace. My back was throbbing, but it was worth it. I took care of him. I wish he wouldn't have taken off so soon. Oh, well. I had things to do anyway. I needed to pick Agatha up from the repair shop. She had caught a bug and I had to bring the poor baby in.

"Hello!" I was welcomed in, "Can I help you?"

"I'm here to pick up Lady Agatha," I told.

"Ah, yes," the repairman chimed, taking a dwarf panda Allmate out of one of the cages behind him, "She's all fixed. Be careful with her."

"I will," I tapped on the panda's forehead, "Agatha, wake up."

"Angel…?" a soft little voice spoke.

"Hey," I beamed, putting her on my shoulder, "How are you feeling?"

"Better," Agatha stretched.

"Thank you!" I scanned my Coil and started heading out, "I missed you, Aggie."

"And I you," she nuzzled into my neck, "What have I missed? Do you still need me to rough Yuki up?"

"Don't even get me started on Yuki," I gagged at the mere thought of my ex-boyfriend. Until someone even better popped into my thoughts, "Oh, Agatha…We have some catching up to do, my friend."

"What happened while I was away?"

"Noiz," I swooned, "His name is Noiz. He's a ten. And I could listen to him talk for hours, even if he does sometimes come off a little rude. That's to be expected, though. His boyfriend just left him."

"Boyfriend?" Agatha wondered, "And you're sniffing around?"

"He's made moves on me," I assured, "I'm thinking he swings both ways."

"I don't want you getting hurt again," she worried, "Don't get your hopes up."

"I can't wait for you to meet him," I chirped.

"He sounds unpleasant," Agatha judged, "What's he look like?"

"Come on," I grinned, "I got taste. He's got green eyes that pierce my soul. They look like if you were to turn the lights out, they'd glow in the dark."

"This man has made you so eloquent."

"But here's the weird part," I went on, "While he was asleep in my lap last night, I pulled out a dozen different rings from his face. And a couple in the back of his neck."

"So, he's covered in piercings?"

"Oh, yeah," I nodded, "When I took them all out, he looked like a different person. It made me a little uncomfortable."

"I thought piercings weren't your thing."

"They weren't! Until I met Noiz."

All of a sudden, I got this throbbing headache and a pixelated shade came down on me. I had heard of this happening, but I never thought of this happening to me. I'm not surprised, though. I was caught in a Rhyme field. Me. An unmarked, seemingly nonthreatening girl. I tried to get out of it. I tried to run.

Whoever attacked me wasn't going to let me go. Alright then. I hoped they knew what they got themselves into. I guess I'm being forced out of retirement. Something tells me they weren't expecting one of the best Rhyme players in the world to walk into their trap.

Rhyme name: TenshiUsagiChan.

I was spoken of in hushed whispers throughout the forums. I fell off the face of the Earth after a fight nearly turned into me narrowly escaping an unwanted grope session in a back alley. They're always shocked to find out I'm a girl. I don't understand why. It's not like I hide it.

"Looks like we're not getting out of it," I grumbled, "I'm sorry to do this to you so soon after getting out of the shop, Aggie, but we have no other choice. You ready?"

"Let's do this," my Allmate turned into her avatar form. Agatha became an Amazonian warrior in heavy gold and light pink armor. She could kick ass and take names.

"Alright," I put my game face on as what looked like giant bunnies tagged on stone pillars rose up. Ruff Rabbit, huh…? Interesting, "Agatha, jubilation!"

"Got it!" Agatha took her giant blade and took out their defensive pillars first, revealing my opponent's avatar. A half-naked, nicely cut man dressed in a lion pelt and tribal tattoos. Wow. What a douche.

"Multiplication set!" I called out.

Agatha went from one Amazonian warrior to an entire army. But the other guy gave an order that took out half of them. We took one hell of a hit. But I had my ace in the hole.

"What are your orders?" she dropped to one knee by my side.

"Knockout set," I kept my voice down, "After that, we make a run for the fire escape in the alley."

"Yes," Agatha agreed, "That would probably be for the best. On your command."

"Go!"

Agatha's blade charged up with a bright, divine light. With a spin and a flick of her wrist, a brilliant explosion went off, ending the match and adding another win under my belt. Don't screw with the best, kids. That's the moral of today's story. And cockiness will be your downfall.

As soon as the Rhyme field dropped, Agatha jumped onto my shoulder and I climbed up the fire escape. I didn't want them to see me. I was getting flashbacks to my last fight. I hid in the darkest parts of the shadows high on the fire escape and sat until they went away. Which, by the looks of things, wasn't going to happen for a while yet.

"Show yourself, Tenshi!" a voice yelled out, "You can't hide forever!"

Wait a minute. I knew that voice. If I didn't know any better, I'd think that was…No…He never would've played Rhyme. He thought games were stupid. He wouldn't shut up about me playing console games at home. Hell, he made fun of my bookshelves full of a delightful assortment of fantasy RPGs, some platformers…the occasional yaoi game, but I kept those hidden.

"What are you doing, noob?" another spoke, shaking me to the core. I know that one…

"I was just…"

"I told you we don't do random attacks anymore," he scolded, "What was their name?"

"TenshiUsagiChan."

"You random attacked TenshiUsagiChan?!"

"What's the big deal?"

"No wonder you lost," he growled, "They're a legend! They retired ages ago, though. No one knows why."

"Sorry, Noiz. I'm still a noob."

"Obviously."

"Noiz…?" I couldn't help myself.

"Angel," he came over to the fire escape and extended his hand to me, "Come down here. It's alright. I'm sorry. That attack wasn't supposed to happen. One of my new guys is an idiot."

"Angel?" Dammit. It was him.

"You know her, Yuki?" Noiz asked.

"Yeah," he scoffed, "She's a huge bitch. And a total prude."

 _SMACK._

For a moment, the world stood still. I didn't understand why he did what he did, but Noiz's fist went into Yuki's jaw, "Don't say that about her."

"She's my ex-girlfriend," Yuki wiped the blood from his lip, "I can say whatever I damn well please about her."

 _SMACK._

Noiz threw another punch and put his arm around me, "No. You can't. I want you off the team."

"What?" Yuki quivered, "No. Noiz, I can't be a no mark. Do you know what they do to guys that don't belong to a team? Morphine comes for them! Please! Let me stay! I didn't know you and Angel were a thing. I'm sorry!"

"Your protection is not my problem," Noiz snarled, "Now, get the hell out of my sight!"

Yuki scrambled to his feet and took off in the opposite direction. Good riddance. I put my head on my hero's shoulder, "Thanks, Noiz."

"You didn't deserve that and he didn't deserve you," Noiz assured.

"Was he serious about Morphine?" I got nervous. Morphine was as much of a legend as I was. More of a myth than a legend, but all good legends start as myths, right?

"He thinks he is," Noiz smirked, "Morphine disbanded shortly after the fall of Platinum Jail. I just tell that to the new recruits that annoy me."

"How do you know that?" I wondered, "I heard Morphine's still alive and well."

"I was there when Morphine crumbled," he told, "I know Trip and Virus. Unfortunately. They knew Aoba and Aoba knew me. Mutual friends, I guess if that's what you want to call it. Trip and Virus were the leaders of Morphine."

"And what if Morphine comes back?" I asked, "What's a no mark like me going to do if they come for me?"

"You're not a no mark," Noiz promised, "You're under the protection of Ruff Rabbit. You'll be safe."

"Are you sure?" I looked up at him, "Your leader won't mind?"

"Angel," Noiz shook his head, "Come on. Let me walk you home."

"Ok," I thought it over for a minute, "You're the leader of Ruff Rabbit, aren't you?"

"Guilty," he took my hand, "What about you? I didn't even know you had an Allmate, let alone were one of the greatest Rhyme players to ever exist."

"Sorry," I blushed, "I don't really bring up Rhyme on the first date. That's usually a dealbreaker."

"I'm the leader of a Rhyme team," he pointed out, "You don't think I'd want to know you played Rhyme?"

"I'm retired," I put my foot down, "I don't plan on getting back into it. I know I'm one of the best in the history of the game, but I can't. I'd much rather be one of the girls hanging all over the leader of a team without a brain in their heads than actually playing again."

"That's kind of a shame," Noiz sighed, "I'd love to see you fight in Rhyme. Even if it were against me."

"You'd let me win."

"No. I'd be giving my all. If I were to beat the best, that would make me the best."

"You saved the best," I wrapped myself around his arm, "Thank you, Noiz. By the way you were talking to Yuki, I am one of those girls that hang all over the leader of a Rhyme team."

"I covered for you," he put it bluntly, "Isn't that what friends do?"

"Yeah." Ouch, "Friends do that kind of thing for each other."

"That was exhausting," a little voice chirped from my hoody pocket, "Is it safe yet, Angel?"

"Oh!" I pulled Agatha out and put her back on my shoulder, "Sorry, Aggie. Didn't think you'd want to be involved in the drama."

"You should know better," Agatha assured, "You know how I love the gossip."

"Shame on you," I scolded lightly, "Noiz, this is Agatha, my Allmate. Agatha, this is Noiz. Play nice."

Noiz didn't give Agatha much of a thought. However, Aggie caught sight of the cube hanging on Noiz's belt with the bunny face on it, "Aren't you going to introduce us?"

"My Allmate doesn't speak unless it's a Rhyme fight," Noiz led me up the stairs to my apartment, "If you're looking for something to call it in casual conversation, it's Usagimodoki."

"Cute, isn't it?" she gushed.

"Agatha," I chastised.

"Right," she remembered her place, "Sorry, Angel."

"I get it, though," I smiled a little, "You can't help but love the cuter things in life. Especially when they fall into your lap."

"I wish I could stay a while," Noiz shuffled his feet, "But I have to go. Don't think you're getting out of our chat. I need to know some things about you as a Rhyme player, Angel."

"And I'll be right here when you have a spare minute."

"I'll see you later then." And just like that, Noiz left me on my front door.

"Angel," Agatha jumped from my shoulder to the top of my couch, "Are you alright?"

"Fine," I sighed out, "Just fine."

"This is exactly what I was worried about," she worried, nuzzling into my belly, "I don't want you getting all worked up over Noiz."

"What'd you think?" I wondered, "Of Noiz, I mean. Not me getting worked up over him."

"He's kind of got a chip on his shoulder, Angel," Agatha reviewed, "What happened with him?"

"His boyfriend tore his heart out," I scratched the top of her head, "Which explains a lot…Friend. That hurts."

"I knew it," her leg twitched, "You love him, don't you?"

"Love's a strong word," I put her on the coffee table, "But I miss him. And for whatever reason, I can't get him out of my mind. I worry about him. But we just met the other day."

"Someone doesn't believe in love at first sight."

"No one asked you," I nudged my Allmate, "Come on. I'm tired. I need to go to bed."

"Alright," Agatha let it go, following me to my bedroom, "Good night, Angel."

"Good night, Aggie," I threw myself on my bed and got comfortable. But something didn't feel right. And I couldn't sleep to save my life. So, I went to the couch. As soon as I sat down, I started feeling really tired. I counted out the piercings I pulled out of Noiz's face while he slept in my lap.

One in his right ear…One in his left ear…Two in his left ear…Three in his left ear…Four in his left ear…Five in his left ear…Six in his left ear...

One in his eyebrow…Two in his eyebrow…One between the two of them…

One in his bottom lip…Two in his bottom lip…

Before I knew it, I rested my head on the arm of my couch and I was out cold…

 **A/N: Hi, guys! All four of you…Now, I'm sorry I didn't update this on Monday. The site was being a pain and I wasn't sure if you guys were going to still be able to see it and…well…you know. I really appreciate your patience and it's DEFINITELY going to be rewarded this Monday. Because this Monday's update…It's going to be pretty great. See you next chapter! xx**


	5. His Name is Koujaku

Knock, knock.

"Angel," Agatha woke me up, "There's someone at the door."

"What time is it?" I asked, pushing my glasses up to get to my eyes.

"Midnight," she reported.

Knock, knock.

"Angel?"

I got up from the couch and looked through my peephole, "Noiz?"

I wasn't exactly going to let him stand out there. Especially when he was practically naked with the exception of a bright red silk kimono, "Hey. Sorry for coming by so late."

"Don't worry about it," I brushed him off, "Is everything ok?"

"I screwed up," his voice broke, "I screwed up big."

"Come in," I insisted, "Do you want to sit down?"

"No," Noiz shook his head, "I'd rather not. Not for a little while longer." 

"What happened?" I worried.

"I went back to my apartment after I left here," Noiz began, "And I started spiraling into a pit of anger and self-loathing. So, I went for a walk and I ended up at a sake bar."

"You're not…"

"No," he assured, "I'm not drunk. I was drinking water. But Koujaku…He was there."

"Koujaku…?" I had heard the girls at work gush over a guy named Koujaku. Apparently, he was a pretty talented hairdresser that could make any woman melt.

"Koujaku," Noiz confirmed, "You've probably heard of him."

"Just in passing."

"When we first met, he hated me," he went on, "In his defense, I did do a drive by on Aoba, but that's beside the point."

"Then, how did you screw up?" I wondered.

"Well, his feelings toward me hadn't changed," Noiz gently brought himself down onto the couch, wincing a bit, and rolled onto his side, "But he was drunk. I was depressed. And we had the most wicked hate sex I've ever had in my life. Nailing Koujaku would've been the best revenge lay. It'd piss off Aoba to no end. Koujaku's been like a brother to him since they were kids. I figured if I went off with him, it'd make me feel better. He fell asleep shortly after and I just felt worse to the point where I was throwing up in the alley. And that's when I came here."

"Why did you come here?" I cradled him in my arms.

"I couldn't go home," Noiz cuddled into me, "I just couldn't. Going back to my empty apartment. And your building was a couple streets over from Koujaku's place."

"You can crash here," I allowed, "How are you feeling now?"

"Like I want the sweet release of death…"

"No," I held him closer, "Don't give me that, Noiz. Seriously. How are you feeling?"

"I don't know," he heaved a heavy sigh, "Maybe it's the taste of the sake from Koujaku's lips. Maybe it's the literal pain in my ass. Maybe it's the fact that I'm still wickedly depressed. But I could stand to throw up again."

"Yep," I put my foot down, "You're not going anywhere. You're staying right here."

"I need a distraction," Noiz requested, "How did you end up on Midorijima? You're not a local girl."

"You're right. I'm not," I told, "I was living in San Diego in the States. I went to a convention to do the cute cosplay girl thing and I met Yuki. He and I dated for a few months before he sprung moving back to Midorijima on me. He didn't want to go by himself and he didn't want to leave me, so I said my goodbyes and I've been here ever since."

"You were a cute cosplay girl…?"

"Really?" I blushed, "That's what you took away from that?"

"What would you cosplay as?" he asked.

"Well," I took Noiz's hat from him, "Occasionally, I'd be various animals. Your run of the mill neko maid. Bunny girl. Panda. Sometimes, I'd be a badass in armor. Fairies. Fairy tale characters. Mythical creatures. I've been all of them. I was a pro in the fantasy category, no matter the fantasy."

"Do you…" Noiz looked up at me, "Do you still have all of them…?"

"Not like that kind of fantasy, you pervert," I gave him a swat, "Things you wouldn't see out in the wild."

"Like fairies and elves and things like that," Noiz figured, "I know what you meant."

"To answer your question…" I went on, "Yes. I do still have all of them. Every neko maid. Every bunny girl. Every element of fairy. Every mermaid. Every color variation. My guest bedroom isn't used as a guest bedroom. It's my cosplay closet."

"Do you still cosplay?" Noiz wondered.

"Oh, yeah," I nodded, "When the mood strikes, I guess. Why?"

"Could I…" he blushed, "Could I see some of them?"

"Are you serious?" I giggled a little, "It's one in the morning. I have to be at work at ten. And you want me to show you some of my work."

"Please?"

I hated how he could have me with just one word, "You seriously want me to show you my cosplay skills at one in the morning?"

"Come on, Angel," he begged, "How long has it been since you've been the cute cosplay girl?"

"Not since I've been on Midorijima…" I admitted.

"For me…?"

I thought it over for a moment. Every fiber of my being wanted to punch him so hard in his beautiful, metal face…but I couldn't, "Fine. I'll do it. And I guess I'll call into work, too. Kyu owes me a favor."

"Good," a little smile graced Noiz's face.

"Any requests?" I asked, walking back to my guest room.

"Surprise me."

"I'm too tired to do a full, proper cosplay," I called out, thumbing through the racks and racks of costumes I had, "I'm not putting my contacts back in. I'm not doing my hair and makeup to match. You get me as I am."

"That's fine…"

I still couldn't believe I was doing this. I just wanted to crawl back in bed and go to sleep. Yet, here I was. Going through my cosplay closet just so Noiz wouldn't be miserable anymore. I am such a good person…And I had just the one. This one was always a more popular one when I'd go to conventions back home. Mostly because a good handful of the guys there were perverts.

Let's see…I needed my black uniform dress, my white apron, my white gloves, my stockings…Hmm…Nylons or fishnets…? Decisions, decisions…I'll go fishnets. I'm feeling a little cheeky in my delirium. Why not? Now, all I was missing was my cat ears. Because I had a feeling that once I slipped on my knee high black boots, I'd have Noiz drooling all over himself.

This was way too much damn effort…

"Good enough?" I stood in the middle of my living room, "Master…?"

"You still make a cute cosplay girl," Noiz said, looking me over. Seven words. Seven words were all it took to make me burst into a volcanic nosebleed. Dammit! Blood doesn't come out of white easily! And I put a lot of work into this! I don't want to have to make another one just because Noiz made me bleed all over this one, "Angel? Are you ok?"

"Fine," I peeled my glove off, catching any blood before it dripped down. Huh…I guess I didn't have a nosebleed. Metaphorical one, maybe? Just being melodramatic, "You really think I make a cute cosplay girl…?"

"Definitely," he grinned darkly, "Why don't you come here, neko-chan?"

I felt my entire body be engulfed in flames. I couldn't be blushing like this. Not now. No, no, no…Come on, body. Why must you betray me? But I couldn't resist. And in all honesty, I kind of asked for it. I'm starting to regret calling Noiz master. I curled into his side, my head resting on his hip, "Do you have a neko fetish, Noiz?"

"Not really," Noiz entangled his fingers in my hair, "Just think you make a cute neko maid."

"Thank you…"

"No," he stopped me, "Thank you. I really am sorry about this. Showing up so late at night."

"It's fine, Noiz," I assured, "You're always welcome here. Especially if you're not doing ok like this. Now, if it's all the same to you, I'd like to go back to sleep now."

I pulled the blanket off the back of my couch and made myself comfortable at Noiz's side, "Don't you think your bed would be better?"

"I was here when you first got here," I told, my eyes snapped shut.

"Why were you sleeping on the couch?" he wondered.

That wasn't supposed to slip out, "I was having a hard time sleeping, so I came out here."

"Here," Noiz pulled me onto my feet, "Let me help you with that. Besides, you're holding me hostage here again anyway, right?"

Was…was this really happening? Was a ten like Noiz about to take a potato like me to bed? And just after he had finished throwing up after sex with practically his ex's brother? I guess so. Noiz gently laid me onto my purple bedspread, unzipped my boots, and crawled in next to me, "You don't have to do this."

"Trust me," Noiz pulled me against his chest, "After what happened with Koujaku, this was all I wanted. After he was done being rough with me, all I wanted was to be innocent with him. But for whatever reason, he wasn't having that. After he fell asleep, I tried to be closer with him, but he'd just move me off him and move away from me."

"Be honest with me, Noiz," I teased, "You just want me down here, so I can't take your piercings out again."

"You caught me," he chuckled, "That's why. I let you steal my hat, Angel. I'm pretty sure you taking my piercings out again would have little to no effect on me anymore."

"In that case," I snuggled into him, "I'd be more than happy to oblige."

"Good night, Angel," Noiz cradled me so delicately.

"Good night," I listened to the erratic rhythm of his heartbeat. Was I doing that? Was this all because of me? Then again, he was still probably coming down from what he and Koujaku were doing earlier tonight. However, I did look pretty killer in those boots. They did have a dominatrix feel to them. No. This was nothing but mere nonsense in my head. I nuzzled my face into Noiz's ribs and it didn't take very much for me to be out like a light.

 **A/N: Hi, guys. Welcome back to the regularly scheduled programming. Hopefully, the reviews are situated and everything's ok again. Now, this chapter kind of came out of those who ship Noiz and Koujaku. However, I am not one of them. Noiz and Aoba are kind of my OTP as far as Dramatical Murder is concerned. And yes, it did hurt to have to split them up. But anyway! I thought that Noiz and Koujaku with their deep hatred for each other would have some WICKED hate sex. And that'd just be a fine how do you do on their part. Now, a quick thing to run by you, my four people reading this, I'm thinking about (starting next week) doing a complete week of one story for the entire month of June. Meaning I'd do a week of nothing but Dramatical Murder updates, a week of Ouran High School Host Club updates, a week of Black Butler updates, and I think you get the idea. Would that be alright? I'm genuinely concerned about that. Would that be a good thing? Yes? No? And on that note, I'll see you next chapter! xx**


	6. His Name is Baby

**A/N: Hi, guys! Welcome to our first Bomb Week! If you need some sort of explanation of what's going on, check my profile page or the author's note in last week's chapter. I'll shut up now and let you read. Enjoy! :)**

I woke up the next morning on my back. That's weird. I normally slept on my side. And in pajamas, not cosplay, but I digress. I felt Noiz's arms wrapped around my body and his head on my stomach. He was practically laying on top of me. Poor thing had a rough night. I'll allow it.

"Good morning, Master," I whispered, "You have to get up. Neko-chan has to use the litter box…"

" _Guten morgen,_ " Noiz groaned into my belly.

"Um…" I gave him a look, "Huh…?"

"I'm sorry, Angel," he woke up a little more, "I tend to revert into the mother tongue when I first wake up. My brain's way of saying it's on autopilot."

"I didn't think you were local," I held him, "What was that, Russian?"

"German," he corrected.

"One of those languages that sound threatening when it's yelled," I brushed him off, not entirely awake myself.

"I'd say German would sound more threatening," Noiz argued.

"You're biased, though," I pointed out.

"I might be a little biased," he yawned, "So, what are we doing today?"

"Hold on a minute," I grabbed my Coil off my nightstand and scrolled through my contacts.

"What are you doing?" Noiz asked.

"Hush," I silenced him.

"Hello?" a squeaky voice sang on the other end.

"Hey, Kyu," I greeted, "It's Angel."

"Hi, Angel!" she chirped, "What's up?"

"You know how I covered for you last week?" I reminded, "On my day off?"

"Yeah. What about it?"

"I need you to cover for me," I begged, "I can't come in today."

"Is everything alright?" Kyu worried.

"I'm fine," I settled her, "I have a baby that's not feeling very well and I need to take care of him."

"Sure," Kyu agreed, "I'll cover your shift for you. I owe you one anyway."

"Bless you, Kyu," I let out a heavy sigh of relief, "You're a saint. I really appreciate it."

"No problem!" she chimed, "I hope your little guy feels better."

"Thank you."

"See you tomorrow!"

Click.

"You used me as an excuse?" Noiz smirked up at me.

"Yes, I did," I poked his face, "Now, in addiction to skipping work today, I have to go pick up a part for Agatha, too. I'll be right back, ok?"

"Wait, Angel," Noiz grabbed my wrist, "What if you get caught in another drive-by? Or if you run into Yuki again? Or worse, Trip and Virus are up to something again?"

"Don't worry about me, Noiz," I assured, "I'll be fine. And as soon as I come back, we're getting breakfast. I'm starving and I don't feel like cooking."

"Fine," he let me go, "But please. Be careful. And I hope you're not going out like that."

"Of course not," I giggled, rolling my eyes, "You sound like my mother. I'll be ok, Noiz. I promise."

I had never seen Noiz worry about me like this before. I sort of saw it when Yuki forced me out of Rhyme retirement. And Noiz punched Yuki's face in. I must admit I did get an odd sense of joy and delight out of that. I wouldn't have expected such a thing from the guy I met at the market, though.

I left Noiz and Agatha at my place and took off to the junk shop down the street. Mediocrity. Definitely lived up to its name. That's for sure. This was the place the guy suggested. It looked pretty dead in here. I'm sure the sign said it was open. Didn't look very open to me.

"Hello," a familiar voice chimed, "I'll be right with you."

I heard the clacking of little paws on the shop floor and of course, my heart melted, "Ren!"

"Angel!" the Allmate jumped up into my arms, nuzzling his face in my neck.

"Hi there, cutie," I rubbed his belly, "I didn't expect to see you in here. You don't need any new parts, too, do you?"

"No," he assured, "I'm well maintained."

"Can I help you?" Aoba walked out from the back, "Ren, what are you doing?"

"Getting belly rubs," Ren said, his tail wagging out of control and his back legs twitching.

"I hope he didn't cause you any trouble," Aoba apologized, "Hold on. You're the girl that was at Noiz's apartment."

"Yes," I nodded. I didn't expect to see Noiz's ex here. All I wanted was a quick trip in and out.

"Does he talk about me?" he lowered his gaze.

"I don't even know your name," I lied, "When I asked about you, Noiz got really mad at me, so I figured I'd leave him alone about it."

"How is he?" Aoba wondered.

I couldn't tell him about Noiz and Koujaku last night. That wasn't my place. And he didn't need to know Noiz stayed with me last night either. That was just none of his business, "He'll be alright."

"I'm sorry," Aoba chuckled nervously, "I'm sure you have better things to do today than listen to my problems and give my Allmate belly rubs. How may I help you?"

"I ordered a DP-223 chip for my Allmate," I told, "I'm here to pick it up."

"The dwarf panda," he nodded, "Let me see if it's in the back."

"Thank you," I smiled politely. As soon as he skipped off into the back, my Coil started beeping. And with a message from Noiz!

 _Mediocrity?_

 _Yes._

 _Is he there?_

He had to have meant Aoba.

 _Yes._

 _Café around the corner? We'll be waiting._

I couldn't keep a smile off my face if I wanted to. Noiz could be so sweet sometimes. Hold on. we? Would he have a mouse in his pocket? Was he bringing a friend? Noiz didn't strike me as the type that kept many friends around. He's too self-reliant for that.

"Here we are," Aoba came back out, "One DP-223 chip. Do you need me to install it for you?"

"No, thank you," I took the chip off the counter, "I can manage."

"You have an Allmate?" Ren's ears perked up.

"Yes, I do," I scratched his chest, "Maybe I'll introduce you someday, Ren. Agatha's a sweetheart when she wants to be."

"Sounds nice."

"Well," I stopped scratching his belly, "I have to go. I'm meeting someone and I'm keeping them waiting."

"No, Angel," Ren begged, "Don't stop…"

"Sorry, cutie," I gave him one last pet, "All good things. Thanks for the part."

"Wait," Aoba stopped me. I'm pretty sure I had scanned my Coil for the chip, "About Noiz…"

"What about him?" I leaned against the door.

"Please take care of him," he requested. Then, at the drop of a hat, Aoba turned really hostile, "If you can…" 

"I will," I gave him a nod and got the hell out of there.

What did he mean, if I could? It's not like taking care of Noiz had proven to be a difficult task. If he could be knocking on my door at midnight, depressed out of his skull and get me to go through my cosplay closet, I'm sure I could take care of him with no problem. Aoba was just jealous that I had his ex-boyfriend. Or maybe he was regretting ever breaking up with Noiz in the first place. Maybe a little bit of both?

None of that mattered now. I walked into the café and did a quick scan around the room for Noiz and the mouse in his pocket. I was downright famished and needed a caffeine boost. I could already go back to sleep. After what felt like an eternity, I finally found him sitting by himself, twiddling his thumbs, no doubt waiting on me.

"Is this seat taken?" I sat opposite him.

"It is now," he jabbed, "I already ordered if that's alright."

"That's fine," I allowed. I gave Noiz a glance over, "Are you ok?"

"Fine," he said flatly, then started worrying again, "What about you? You're not having really bad headaches or feel disoriented, do you?"

"No," I shook my head, "I'm golden."

"So, what did you have to get at the junk shop?" Noiz asked, stacking the coffee creamers.

"A chip for Agatha," I pulled it from the bag, "You didn't do something silly like leave her at my place, did you?"

"No," he tugged at his shirt pocket, "She's right here."

Sure enough, Aggie was still sleeping comfortably and soundly in Noiz's pocket. That didn't pull at my heartstrings a bit. My already adorable Allmate and best friend curled up in Noiz's pocket. I started to reach for her, "Do you mind?"

"Not at all," Noiz smirked a bit, keeping it open.

I tapped on my Allmate's forehead and pulled her out of her cozy bed, "Wake up, Agatha. I have something for you."

Slowly, her eyes popped open, sparkling back at me, "Good morning, Angel."

"Good morning," I smiled at the little panda in my hands.

"Virus protection upgrade, huh?" Noiz looked my recent purchase over, "Do you know how to install this properly?"

"Of course I do," I scoffed, a little insulted.

"Here," Noiz took Agatha from me and opened her control panel right on the table.

"Noiz!" I squeaked, "What the hell are you doing to my Allmate?"

"Installing the virus protection," he hooked Agatha up to his Coil, "And giving it a little boost."

"What kind of a boost?" I got nervous.

"Angel, I'm a genius," Noiz opened up his keyboard, "Trust me. I know what I'm doing. I'm a master hacker. I could empty any bank in Midorijima without batting an eye. Hacking is how I make my living. Some people pay top dollar for Rhyme information. Yet, here I am, choosing to use my skills to upgrade your Allmate. Don't worry."

"Excuse me," a waitress had four different plates on her arms.

"Just set them on the table," Noiz directed, not breaking his concentration, "Don't get anything on the Allmate or any of my implements please."

"Yes, sir," she bowed, putting our food in front of us. Dear God…This was a bit excessive. Then again, I had seen Noiz eat his feelings before.

Crepes? Yum! I had heard this café's crepes were legendary, but they also used really high quality, really expensive ingredients. And Noiz had ordered us three each with a side of beautiful fresh fruit. Two kinds of melon, assorted berries, and some that I had never seen before. This was too much. I couldn't.

Before I even looked to see what filling awaited me, I looked over at Noiz. He looked so content. So calm. So focused. Almost happy. The way he tinkered with my Allmate was almost like an art form. And I couldn't help but watch. Noiz's motions and movements were absolutely mesmerizing, "Any particular reason you're staring at me?"

"Oh," I blushed, "I didn't realize I was staring. I'm sorry."

"I don't have problem with it," he continued, "Just wondering why."

"No reason," I sighed, "Just watching you work."

"You won't be watching much longer," Noiz closed his keyboard and unhooked Agatha from his Coil, "All done."

"How do you feel, Aggie?" I put her back on my shoulder.

"A little violated," she cuddled, "But all in all, pretty healthy."

"Thank you, Noiz," I took his hand under the table.

"I just upgraded your Allmate," he brushed me off, "It's not like I solved world hunger."

"I love you, Noiz," Agatha jumped down from her perch and climbed back into his shirt pocket, "Why did I say that?"

"Because I added affection for me into your programming," Noiz admitted, petting her head.

"Hey!" Agatha squeaked, "What did you do that for?"

"I plan on sticking around for a while," he told, "Can't have you hating me. And you bit me this morning. Or do you not remember that?"

"How long do you plan on sticking around?" my hands started shaking.

"A while," Noiz smiled, making my heart melt. I had never seen such a genuine smile on Noiz's face. Wait a minute…Noiz was just with Koujaku last night, but then again…he was also with me. Was…Was Noiz starting to…actually fall for me…? Or was this just another rebound thing…? Whatever it was, I hoped it was going to last that while Noiz had quoted me. I could get on board with that.

"Are you going to actually eat something now?" I chided him, "You haven't touched a thing since you opened Agatha up."

"And performed minor surgery for the world to see," she grumbled.

"Yeah, I guess," Noiz twiddled his fork between his fingers, "I wasn't sure what kind to get for you, so if you don't like them, I apologize in advance."

I cut my first one open to find a dark brown cream oozing out of it. Chocolate…Chocolate…If I wasn't so terrified of his reaction, I would've told Noiz I loved him then and there. Now I understood the hype around these things. This was dark chocolate. It was just the right amount of bitter with the right amount of sweet. I thought my body was ready for it. It wasn't. These crepes damn near sent my body into shock. My initial experience made me terrified to try the other ones. I had two others in front of me after the inhalation of the first one.

"I should've done this earlier," Noiz pinned my left wrist on the table and lined his Coil up to my arm.

"Ouch!" Something stabbed me, "What the hell was that?"

"I told you," he justified, "I'm a hacking genius. Your Allmate's not the only thing I can upgrade. My Coil can take a blood sample and tell me just about anything about whoever's blood I have."

"You could've asked, you know," I rubbed my wrist, "Hold on. You just took a blood sample?!"

"Yeah," Noiz watched the little display on his wrist, "Honestly, it was to look for any food allergies, so I don't accidentally kill you."

After I got over my feelings of violation, I got curious, "It can tell you all that?"

"It can tell me anything," he explained, "Food allergies. Family history. Records. Preexisting conditions. Locations. The fact that you'll be getting your period next week."

"Noiz!" I scolded, blushing from head to toe, "The world doesn't need to know that!"

"Good thing I came through on the chocolate."

"Noiz!" I stomped on his foot under the table.

"Sorry," he stopped, giggling under his breath, "I'm done."

"All that from one drop of blood…?" I came down.

"It's quite a piece of information," Noiz went on, "I thought you said you were from San Diego."

"That's where I was living before I moved here," I clarified, "I'm originally from the Midwest."

"You didn't strike me as the type to be native to a big city," Noiz stared into my eyes, "Not jaded enough."

"Nope," I felt a chill radiate through my body, "Small town girl with big city dreams."

"What were they?" he wondered, "If you don't mind me asking."

"I wanted to be a manga artist," I told, "I had gone to San Diego when I was a kid and it had felt like home ever since. But plans change. I caught the cosplay bug. I met Yuki. I moved here."

"Why did the plans have to change?"

"Because I had bills to pay and two mouths to feed," I sighed out, "Yuki's job wasn't paying enough, so I had to put my art on the back burner and that's when I started working at the shop."

"How long would it take you to do an entire volume from start to finish?" Noiz asked.

"I don't know," I shrugged, "If I worked my ass off on it, three months or so. A month to actually write out and edit and rewrite the story. Two to draw it out."

"Is that with or without the regular hours at the shop?"

"With the hours at the market," I recalculated, "That'd be eight hours at the market, four hours of sleep, twelve hours of actual work time…Probably double it. I'd have a volume done in six months."

"So, if you didn't have to worry about work," Noiz figured, "You'd be able to submit a volume to anyone who'd be willing to listen in three months…"

"But I wouldn't be able to take that kind of time off," I argued, "I have rent and utilities that keep me alive and relatively comfortable."

"Come on," Noiz took my hand, "You want relatively comfortable? I'll show you relatively comfortable."

"Noiz…" I got nervous, "What are we doing?"

"Trust me," he promised, "You've been taking care of me since we met. Let me return the favor."

 **A/N: My love for Noiz is absolutely ridiculous. I adore him with all my heart. He's such a precious little tsundere, isn't he? And how is he going to return the favor of her taking care of him? I guess you'll have to wait until next we…wait a minute! You'll only have to wait until TOMORROW! Yay! Bomb Week! I knew this was a good idea…See you next chapter! xx**


	7. His Name is Sugar Daddy

**A/N: *ringing a bell* Day two! Give it up for day two! Day two of nonstop service! Well…Day two of Bomb Week, anyway.**

Noiz wasn't lying when he said he wanted to treat me to the finer things. I didn't make it a habit of going into the shopping district of Midorijima. Too many people. Too crowded. If I planned on doing any shopping, I had to have a well thought out plan and a list or I'd either spend too much or I'd get lost. But Noiz…He and I were out with reckless abandon. Everything I needed. Anything I wanted. It was mine.

"Noiz," I asked, "Why are you doing this?"

"Doing what?"

"You know what," I snaked my arms up his, "Why are you being so good to me? People are going to think you're my sugar daddy."

"Let them," Noiz brushed me off, "You helped me at the lowest I've ever been out of the sheer kindness of your heart, Angel. I might as well return the favor."

"This is too much, though…"

"Shut up," he hushed me, "Don't worry about it. You're overthinking."

Noiz took my hand and pulled me into the one place I knew I shouldn't go without a reason and a game plan. It was the biggest electronics store Midorijima had to offer. From the outside, it looked like a normal department store. But once those doors opened, it revealed the tech otaku's paradise. Six floors of monitors, cameras, Allmates, Coils, computers, gaming systems…Enough to make me swoon. But like I said. If I didn't come in here with a list and a goal in mind, I'd end up spending too much. However…I'm not spending my money, am I…? And I wasn't going to take advantage of Noiz like that. I didn't know how much I had already bled his bank account today. He wouldn't let me look at the breakfast bill or any of the receipts from today.

"Hey, Angel," he called from a couple rows over, "What's your current drawing tablet look like?"

"Honestly," I shrugged, "I don't think I've looked at it in a couple months. It was a pile when I bought it, but it was better than nothing. Why?"

"No reason," Noiz chirped, "I need to find a new monitor. I'll be right back."

"Ok…" Noiz took the escalator up to the computing level while I did a little look around of the new Allmates.

"Angel," Agatha worried, "What are you doing…?"

"Looking around in the electronics store," I said, "Why?"

"You're not thinking about something stupid, right?" she quivered, "I'm not being replaced, right? I don't think I'm ready for that. I mean, I know you just got me out of the repair shop and Noiz tore me apart to put in my new chip, but you're not getting rid of me, are you?"

"Of course not," I held her a little tighter, "I'm not getting rid of you, Agatha. We've been through too much together. I've had you since I've been on Midorijima. You can't get rid of me that easily. You're my best friend, Aggie. No one understands me like you do."

"That's because it's in my programming…"

"No," I promised, "I don't care what the newer models look like or how much more efficient they run. I cannot and will not replace you."

"Promise…?"

"Promise."

"Thank you, Angel," Agatha scaled my arm and nuzzled into my neck, "That's very reassuring."

"You're welcome," I kissed the top of her head, nearly frying her circuits in the process, "How about I get you something special before Noiz realizes I have something in my hand and intend to pay for it myself? Anything you'd want?"

"I could use a tiny raincoat," Agatha thought it over, "Splashing in puddles looks like a lot of fun. I've seen other Allmates do it. I want to try it, too."

"It hasn't rained here in months," I giggled, "But if you want, I'll get you a tiny raincoat. The last thing I want is for you to get water in you. Then, I'd have to take you apart, dry you out for a couple days, put you back together. It'd just be a mess."

"But what about splashing in the puddles?"

"Tell you what," I skimmed through the rack of senseless clothes people liked to dress their Allmates in for a raincoat that would fit mine, "If it doesn't rain in the next week, I'll put a little water in the bathtub and let you splash around in that."

"Thank you," a great, big smile stretched across Agatha's face.

"If we're getting you a raincoat," I thought out loud, "We should probably get you some rain boots, too. Although, I carry you everywhere. Getting you boots would almost be pointless. You rarely walk on your own, you lazy little panda."

"Hey!" she snapped, "It's not my fault I'm small! Blame the manufacturer! You didn't have to get a dwarf panda! You could've gotten something bigger if size really meant that much to you!"

"I got you because you were cute," I teased, "And you are pretty badass when we fight in Rhyme together."

"Pretty and badass," Agatha corrected.

"That's my girl!" I chirped, pulling out a raincoat from the rack, "How do you feel about polka dots, Aggie?"

"I'm a panda," she reminded, "I'm already polka dots."

"You're no fun," I pouted, "So, something solid then?"

"I like this one," Agatha jumped down from her usual spot on my shoulder to a solid mint green raincoat, "I want this one."

"Are you sure?" I asked, holding it up to her, "It is a nice color contrast. I'll say that much. I feel like I've seen that color somewhere before."

"What? A pastel green?" she tried her coat on, "Isn't it the same color as Usagimodoki?"

"What's Usagimodoki?" I gave my tiny panda a look.

"It's your boyfriend's Allmate," Agatha looked herself over in the mirror, "I like it!"

"My what?" I squeaked, instantly turning bright red, "Noiz isn't…"

"Angel," she mushed my face, "It's only a matter of time. It's inevitable."

"You talk out of your ass, baby," I took her coat off, "Noiz and I won't happen. That's just ridiculous."

"I'm just saying!"

"Come on," I rolled my eyes, "We need to pay for your coat and your boots. Then, we need to find Noiz before he gets himself into trouble."

"Ok!"

I had a little money to blow today. I was saving it up to go home and see my parents, but if I pick up some extra hours at work, I could probably make it up in no time. So I'll have to push my flight date back a month or two. That's no problem. But I haven't been home in a year and a half. They've waited this long. I'm sure they can wait a little longer.

I found Noiz outside waiting with a bag in his hand. When he caught sight of what I had, he immediately shot me a glare, "What's that?"

"Agatha wanted a rain coat," I told, "I can't say no to her."

"Why would an Allmate need a rain coat?" he wondered.

"I want to feel cute, too, dammit," Agatha squeaked.

"Don't let me stop you."

"Noiz," I got nervous, "What's in the bag?"

"Nothing."

"Noiz," I pulled out my mom voice, "What's in the bag?"

"A little something for a little someone," Noiz kept a tight grip on it.

"It's awfully small to be a new monitor," I pointed out.

"None of them were big enough," he smirked, "Besides, this isn't for me."

"Noiz…"

Silence.

"Noiz…what did you do?"

Silence.

"Noiz…You didn't…"

A dirtier grin appeared on his face, "Is curiosity really killing you that bad?"

"When I know for a fact that it's for me," I scoffed, "Yes. I get very curious."

"Who says it's for you?" Noiz teased, "You assume that you're the only person I'm in contact with on a regular basis."

"Am I…?" I wondered.

"Yes," he gave me the bag, "In this case, your assumptions are right. I only see my team when they have something for me. You're pretty much the only person I really associate with. And this is for you."

I peeked into the bag like a little kid on Christmas morning sneaking presents early. When I saw the name on the box, my heart stopped. I looked back up at Noiz, "You didn't just do what I think you did…"

"What did I do?":

"Noiz!" I squeaked," These are the best drawing tablets on the market! I've been eyeing this up for months, but they were so damn expensive, I could never justify the money. I'd either be too tied up at work or Yuki would be dragging me all over the place. You didn't have to do this!"

"I know I didn't have to," Noiz surrendered to the giant hug I forced him into, "I wanted to. You said you quit drawing because you had Yuki to deal with. Now that you don't, you can get back to what you love. You have a dream to chase, Angel. Let me help you chase it."

I almost started crying. Not in front of Noiz. As long as I live, I refuse to cry in front of him, "Thank you, Noiz. From the bottom of my heart, thank you."

"You helped me get over my ex," Noiz reminded, "The least I can do is make sure you don't let yours hold you down."

"I swear to God," my voice broke, "If you don't shut up in the next ten seconds, I will punch you."

"What did I do now?"

"You're about to get me emotional," I swallowed the lump in my throat, "I'll turn into a mess and you don't need to see that."

"Do you need anything else?" he asked, not letting me go, "While we're still out? Anything at all?"

"No," I shook my head, "This should do it. Don't make fun of my first few sketches! The muscle's pretty stiff."

"You'll never know until you try," Noiz took my hand, "And I know you won't quit without a fight, right?"

I rested my head on his shoulder, "So, I'm really doing this? I'm going to write a manga?"

"I know you can do it," Noiz's encouragement shook me to my very core.

And I knew I couldn't say no to him. I was starting to think I had a problem. Or maybe I had a really good solution in front of me and couldn't recognize it, "Come on. I'm exhausted. Let's go back home."

"Ok."

Noiz and I left the shopping district behind and went back to my cozy hole in the wall. Home sweet home. I threw my bag and Agatha's rain coat and booties on the chair and the rest of me on my couch with Noiz not too far behind. Out of sheer reflex, I curled into his chest. I wasn't expecting him to hold me, though. That was kind of nice. I'll take it.

"You know," I sighed out, "I don't even know what I'd write about."

"I have an idea," Noiz cuddled me.

"All ears."

"You," he suggested.

"Me?" I gave Noiz a look, "I can't make it about me. What kind of a douchebag writer makes a story about themselves? That's just narcissistic."

"Not _you,_ " Noiz clarified, "TenshiUsagiChan. Something tells me you could spin quite a story of a badass warrior queen." 

"Maybe," I shrugged, "Maybe I could make her hid in plain sight. She lost her memory and when her handmaiden finds her, she tries to bring them back. And when they do come back, TenshiUsagiChan makes a magical girl transformation."

"See?" he nudged me, "All it took was a little spark and you have an idea already."

"I'm going to be that douche of a writer," I groaned, "And it's all your fault."

"My pleasure," Noiz put me down on the couch, "Do you want me to set up your tablet for you?"

"If you don't mind," I pointed him toward my computer and pulled my mini sketchbook out of my bag. Watching Noiz do the whole technological genius thing was becoming a favorite pastime of mine, but I also needed to warm my hand back up. I haven't drawn in months. And only one thing was standing out in my mind. My libido was clouding my judgment.

I needed to draw it. This would only be a simple doodle. I didn't need to make it too detailed. It's been a while. I needed to go back to the basics. But the only way I was going to get back into shape would be to just draw. I thought back to this morning, picturing it vividly in my mind. Every turn of his wrist. Every speck of sun reflecting off Agatha's insides and Noiz's face. That's when I got a tad tripped up.

I got completely lost, drawing Noiz. His serene expression of pure concentration. The laser precision of his hands. It wasn't very easy to capture. I wasn't sure if I could accurately do it. I didn't want to screw it up. I couldn't screw it up…

"You're awfully quiet over there, Angel," Noiz said, "What are you up to?"

"Nothing," I grinned. It felt so good to finally be able to do that to him. To keep Noiz in the dark for a change. Besides, I was almost done anyway, drawing his perfect face. I finished the shading on his last lip ring and called it done. All I needed to do was give it a border. I did have some washi tape in my desk drawer, but Noiz kind of had the space occupied. Maybe I had a roll in the end table? Cautiously optimistic, I grabbed the drawer pull and kept my fingers crossed that I had at least one roll in there.

Yes! Thank God for my lack of organization skills! And I had options. Let's see. I like the checkerboard pattern and I like the plaid. I also liked the candy scatter, but I only had one in mind. It was a light pink tape with little bunnies on it. This was one of my favorite tapes. No surprise, considering the 'usagi' part of my Rhyme name meant 'bunny'. I started tearing small pieces of the bunny tape and alternated the checkerboard tape for a little something extra while I watched my favorite tech support set up my tablet.

"Alright, Angel," Noiz broke the silence, "All the drivers are installed. I've unlocked all of the additional brushes. You'd think they'd come with the tablet considering how much you pay for it. Have to give them a little credit for milking every dime out of their customers like that."

"And that's why it's nice to have a professional hacker in your back pocket," I finished putting the last piece of the washi tape frame on, "Thank you, Noiz."

"You're welcome," he said, "Do you need me to show you how to run it? It's probably a lot more complex than what you were used to."

"I think I can figure it out," I assured, handing him the piece of paper from my sketchbook, "Here."

"What's this?" Noiz wondered.

"Payment," I told.

"Angel, no," he pushed me away, "I thought I told you. I don't want you to feel obligated to pay me back for anything."

"It's not monetary," I promised.

"Hold on," Noiz looked my drawing over, "Is this from this morning?"

"Yeah," I smiled, "Had to warm up somehow."

"Normal people just take pictures, you know," he pointed out.

"I've never been considered normal," I blushed, "And I'm sorry if it's not the best. Like I said, I haven't drawn in a while, so I'm still pretty rusty."

"Angel," Noiz stopped me, pressing his lips against my forehead, "It's perfect."

There it is. My volcanic nosebleed. One of these days, it will actually happen. There will be blood gushing from my nose, "You really think it's that good?"

"Translate this into your manga," he insisted, "You'll get a publisher, Angel. I know you will."

I could hardly speak. Between my spazz attack and Noiz doing what he did, I wasn't surprised. I caught Agatha out of the corner of my eye with the biggest smile on her face. I knew I had a lecture coming whenever Noiz leaves, "I guess TenshiUsagiChan is getting her own manga. And every good queen needs a knight to keep her safe."

"Hey," Noiz let me go, "I'm going to let you get started on it and I'm going to go get some food. What do you want?"

"I don't care," I shook him off, "Anything's fine."

"I'll be right back," Noiz waved behind him and left me to start my epic.

Agatha sat on the shelf above my computer between my speakers with the smuggest grin on her face. I couldn't take it anymore, "What?"

"I told you so," she teased, "Face it, Angel. You're in love with Noiz."

"I guess…a little…"

"Don't give me that!" Agatha scolded, "I saw that glint in your eye when you were drawing."

"That's because I love to draw," I defended.

"Then, why did you get the same glint when Noiz kissed you?"

Damn. She had me, "Maybe I do love Noiz. Maybe I love the fact that I've been the one to put him back together after his break up. And vice versa."

"Or you're in love with him and you're trying to make excuses."

"Shut up, Aggie," I shoved her a bit.

"I'm not calling him Dad."

"You don't call me Mom!" I squeaked, "Why would you call Noiz Dad?"

"Noiz is nuts for you, too, you know," Agatha admitted, "I could feel it when he was hacking me. No one has ever been so gentle with me before. When he was reprogramming my affection, he upped my affection for you, too."

"I didn't think you could love me any more," I took her down from the shelf.

"And he upped my protective instinct," she went on, "Noiz loves you. You love Noiz. Just make it official already!"

Hard to believe I was taking relationship advice from a dwarf panda. She wasn't wrong. I was falling for Noiz. That scared the hell out of me. Aoba insinuated he was a handful. But Noiz wasn't with Aoba. He was with me. Does this mean the warrior queen wants, not her king, but her knight…?

 **A/N: Is it bad that I've already started plotting out the manga in my head? That'd make for a killer offshoot chapter. Kind of like what I do with the Black Butler fic with the "Through the Demon's Eyes" series and what I've done once before with the Fullmetal Alchemist fic with "The Fullmetal Journals". Well, we do have three days left of this exciting week. Maybe a little peek of what's to happen with it…? General story line, maybe? See you next chapter! xx**


	8. His Name is Canon

**A/N: HAPPY DAY THREE! :D Now, this beginning is going to be something a little different than what you're used to. All six of you that follow this. I don't want to spoil anything, but I promise you that this is still the same Dramatical Murder fic you've come to know and…well, know anyway. Not really sure about the love part.**

 _Bunny (Design note: Plain, but not too generic. Short, light hair. Big eyes, but not too chibi. Almost chibi. Has a different color plaid/solid shirt combination for every day of the week.) was merely a photographer. She worked in the city, doing children's portraits, family shots, group pictures. But she didn't want that. Bunny wanted to take the real pictures. Solitude. Decay. Abandoned castles had become her favorite. She could never understand why. And she always had these great dreams of grandeur. Where she was on top. Where she was a strong, warrior queen. (Design note: Queen Bunny in giant dresses. Longer hair to her waist. Rich, royal colors in her dress. Same in her armor. Silver plated.) However, whenever she'd wake up, it would always be before an attack by an evil wizard (Design note: Dark, frayed robes. Post-apocalyptic looking maybe? Giant hood. Hair covers his face.) hell bent on taking over her kingdom. (Note: Search for medieval castles, gothic architecture, stone types)_

 _But she would always wake up right before the blast. And everything would be back to normal. Her apartment would be the same (Note: Simple. Minimalistic. Near blank slate. Studio). Her camera equipment would clutter the table and the nightstand. Her computer would still be frozen on her editing software until she turned it off and turned it back on again. One of these days, she was really going to have to call tech support for it. Although, it would probably be a lost cause. Bunny's computer was probably older than she was._

 _No one picked up. (Note: Over exaggerated sigh bubble, maybe take up the whole page?) She slams her phone down (Note: Over exaggerated slam. She's pissed and beyond annoyed.) and heads for the electronics store down the street._

" _MY LADY!" Bunny is charged by a strange woman (Color Pallet: Light pink tones, rose golds.)._

" _Who are you?" (Note: Bunny has a WTF expression on her face.)_

" _My lady, do you not remember me?" (Note: Lady Agatha is heartbroken. She and Bunny were once very close.)_

" _I've never met you!"_

" _Yes, you have. (Note: Lady Agatha has a sad, solemn expression) You just don't remember. You've seen it, haven't you? In your dreams? Your kingdom of Azrael."_

 _(Note: Thought bubble. Bunny has a stunned expression.) "What?"_

" _Those aren't dreams, my lady. They're visions! Come! We must find your knight. He, too, was cast to this strange realm for your protection."_

" _Realm? This isn't a realm. It's Japan."_

" _Is this what passes for your kingdom, Mistress?"_

" _I'm not your mistress!"_

" _Yes, you are. I am your handmaiden, Mistress. I am Agatha."_

 _Agatha grips Bunny's wrist tightly and takes off at nearly inhuman speeds, "AGATHA! SLOW DOWN! WHAT ARE YOU DOING? WHERE ARE WE GOING?!"_

 _And so, Bunny has gained a weird new friend that guides her on her quest to the electronics store she already needed to be at today. A kingdom? Knights? Her kingdom? Her dreams couldn't have been visions. There was just no way._

 _Arrival at the electronics store. Lady Agatha lights up at the boy behind the counter, "Sir William! You're safe!"_

" _Lady Agatha!" He kneels at her feet. "You've found the Queen!"_

" _I told you! I'm not a queen! I don't have a kingdom. I'm no one. I'm just Bunny."  
_

" _Bunny? You've never been just Bunny. Even when we were children. I know your memories have been affected, my queen, but you were never just Bunny. I am Sir William, but you always called me Will. (Note: Noiz without his piercings, but a little harsher in the face. A little nerdier in appearance. Turns badass later in the story)_

 _Will…?_

" _You need to come back to Azrael, my lady. Your kingdom needs you. The dark wizard is coming. He'll destroy us all!"_

"Angel," Noiz pushed my door open, "I'm back."

"Hey, Noiz," I waved behind me, "Welcome home."

"Home?" he wondered, putting a bag of food on my coffee table, "Since when did I move in?"

"Might as well," Agatha the peanut gallery chimed in.

"Agatha!" I snapped, turning a bright had of red, "Sorry. She has a shipping problem."

"A little early in the relationship for that," Noiz pulled a chair up next to me, "Don't you think?"

My heart stopped and dropped into my stomach, "What?"

"How's the manga coming along?" he changed the subject, reading my notes over my shoulder.

"Pretty solid premise so far," I reported, "It's still got miles to go, though."

"What's this down here?" Noiz pointed, "Noiz without the piercings, but a little harsher in the face?"

"That…?" I spoke softly, "That's just a reference."

"So, your knight that also just happens to do tech support as a day job is going to look like me?" he smirked, "I'm flattered. If you're not careful, you'll make me develop an ego."

"I didn't say he was based on you," I got defensive, "Any relation to any persons, real or fictional, is purely coincidental."

"Alright," Noiz let it go, "But I mean…You used my name right in your notes."

"Noiz, I will kick you."

"Kick me," he grinned, "Or even better, fight me."

"No," I put my foot down, "I'm retired. Unless you happen to be with me when I get caught in a drive by, you will probably never see me in a Rhyme fight."

"I guess I'll have to pull you into a drive by myself then," he teased.

"You wouldn't…"

"I would…"

"Would you two shut up and kiss already?" Agatha was practically on the edge of her seat.

"I will put you in sleep mode," I threatened, "Don't test me."

Noiz pulled my face to his, "What about me? Can I test you?"

"Don't you test me, too," my heart started racing. Almost to panic attack levels. But I haven't had one of them since I was a kid. What was he planning…?

"What's the matter, Angel?" Noiz put his fingers on my wrist, "A little anxious, are we?"

"No," I growled.

"So, if I were to do this," he pressed his lips against mine so gently, as if he were going to break me if he kissed me any harder, "You would be perfectly content?"

"No," I shook my head, "I wouldn't."

"Why not?" Noiz pouted while Agatha was squealing in the corner, "I've always been told I'm a hell of a kisser."

"Because," I climbed into Noiz's lap and wrapped my legs around his waist, "You were too soft."

I latched myself onto Noiz's face, accidentally pulling out one of his lip rings. Oops. I spit it out onto the coffee table and went back to the task at hand. I had thought about it so long, what making out with Noiz would be like. I got to feel his ring under his tongue and the one through his tongue at the same time. And it was exactly how I imagined it.

The world stopped and Sixpence None the Richer started playing in my head. I had visions of fireworks and rainbows, but this would do. I didn't…I couldn't keep my hands off him. Noiz was all I wanted. I even kicked the door shut behind him and may have possibly knocked my Allmate into the bathroom across the hall. That little pervert didn't need to watch what we were about to do.

"Angel," Noiz sucked on my neck a little, "Are you sure you're ok with this?"

"Why?" I jabbed, "Nervous?"

"Considering I've never done this with a girl?" he panted in my ear, "Yeah. A little bit."

"Really?" I sat up, "You've never had sex with a girl before?"

"Just Aoba and Koujaku."

"Maybe you should buy me dinner first…" I suggested, easing his anxieties.

"I did," he pointed out, "It's still on the coffee table."

"Ok," I got up, "Not that I don't want to, Noiz, but if it's too soon for you to move in, it's too soon for us to do that."

"I understand," he nodded.

"Don't worry, sweetheart," I rested my hand on his cheek, "It will happen. Just not right now. As long as it's nothing like a stereotypical prom night, I'll be good."

"Ok," Noiz gave me one last kiss and helped me up from my bed. I may be regretting it now, but I think this would've been a smart decision that future me is highfiving past me for, "Hey, Angel?"

"Yeah, Noiz?"

"Are we…?"

"Are we?" I was so relieved I wasn't the only one thinking that.

"I wouldn't mind it."

"Neither would I…"

"Alright," Noiz opened my door, "I guess we are then."

"Ok." I smiled, looking into the bathroom, "You ok, Aggie?" 

"Just got smacked in the head with a door," she grunted, "But I'm fine. What about you? You can't tell me you two are done already."

"No," I rolled my eyes, "We didn't do anything."

"Come on, Angel!" Agatha whined, "Do you not remember what we talked about?"

"If it makes you feel any better," I comforted as she scaled my arm, "Your favorite ship has sailed."

The little panda looked at me, then at Noiz, then back to me, "I'm still not calling him Dad."

"Why would you?" Noiz wondered.

"Don't ask," I sighed out, "Agatha's weird."

"But you still love me," she cuddled into my shoulder.

"Of course I do," I scratched her head.

Ring, ring.

"What the hell…?" Noiz looked down at his wrist, answering his Coil, "What?"

"We got a problem, boss," a voice barked out, "One of the new guys got hit in a drive by. We need to rally."

"Who is it?" Noiz asked, "Do you know?"

"No idea."

"Alright," Noiz let out a heavy sigh, "We'll be there in ten minutes."

"Roger!"

"Sorry, Angel," he got up from my couch, "Looks like we'll have to do this some other time. I have to go take care of the team."

"Maybe I should go with you," I suggested, "I might actually be some help."

"It could get dangerous," he warned, "Are you sure?"

"Do you forget who I am?" I smirked, "You said you wanted to see me fight, didn't you? Well, this would be a possible opportunity."

"Really?" Noiz mirrored me, "I guess every good Rhyme leader needs a cute girl hanging all over him."

"I knew you weren't going to let me stay behind," I took his hand and the two of us ran off to the Ruff Rabbit territory.

 **A/N: So, this sounds like it's going to be just a hoot of a time. And I remember yesterday saying something about posting the story idea. And I'm sorry for being a tease with the smut. Soon enough, my friends. Soon enough. Until then, I'll see you next chapter. xx**


	9. His Name is Bolt

**A/N: Welcome, all, to day four. Enjoy your stay. :)**

Noiz and I got to the corner of Midorijima that had been claimed by the members of Ruff Rabbit. Sure enough, no Usui, no rules. There was a crowd, though. Not a very big one, but a crowd nonetheless. One of their own attached on their home turf…Ouch. That's not a wound to the morale.

"Noiz!" one of the guys ran over to us.

"What's going on?" Noiz went into full alpha mode…And I'm not going to lie. It was kind of hot, "Who do we have in there?"

"One of the new guys," he said, "Didn't catch his username."

"Can someone interfere?" Noiz asked.

"No one's tried."

Noiz brought up a screen on his Coil with nothing on it but line after line of computer code, "I'll go in. keep an eye on her."

"Noiz," I whined, "Not in front of the guys…"

"Wish me luck," he stole a quick kiss from me.

"No," I shot him down, "You wish me luck. I'll go. You can stay here. I can go help out the new guy."

"Angel, no," Noiz stopped me, "I appreciate the sentiment, but you stay. Besides, this is a team matter. You shouldn't have to be the one to take care of it. And you said you were retired."

"What's with you?" I gave him a look, "You were practically begging me for a fight earlier and now, you have the chance to see me fight up close and you want me to sit this one out?"

"You and me fighting and you and whoever started this fight are two completely different things," he wrapped his arms around me, "We have no idea who we're up against. This could get really dangerous and I don't want you getting hurt."

"Noiz," I snaked my hands up his chest, "I'll be fine. Did you forget who I am? I'm sure I can take him."

"Be careful," Noiz sighed, typing my name in the coding.

"You ready, Aggie?" I looked down to the panda at my feet.

"Let's do this!" Agatha squeaked.

"Suit up," I ordered, "Noiz, put me in."

"Alright." Despite the fact that he didn't want to with every fiber of his being, Noiz hit the enter key, "Make me proud. Good luck, Tenshi."

"Thanks, Noiz," I gave him a reassuring smile as a giant graphic appeared on the Rhyme field.

 _A challenger approaches._

 _Username: TenshiUsagiChan._

 _Versus: CyberLynk_

 _Player BoltThief had been removed from the server._

 _FIGHT!_

"Alright, Agatha," I prepared my stance, "We're going to build our defenses first. Multiplication set!"

"Got it!" one warrior princess panda turned into at least fifty. Our opponent took out ten. Not good, "What now, Angel?"

"Defensive maneuver twelve," I commanded, "Follow with a jubilation set."

"Yes, ma'am!" Agatha erected a giant wall and hit the other guy with everything she had. I was so proud. I raised her well. Well…I rebuilt her well. Noiz hacked her brain…But I digress.

"Nice hit," I praised, "Now, finish him off. He's pretty wounded."

"Knockout?"

"Knockout."

Agatha charged her blade and thrusted it into the guy's avatar's chest as hard as possible, sending him into a pixelated dust. The match was over and the Rhyme field dropped. Let's see who CyberLynk is. Even better, let's see if he realizes he just got beat by a legend.

Surprise, surprise. CyberLynk tried to take off into the alley, but Noiz grabbed him first, growling in his ear, "Why did you attack one of my guys?"

"Look," the kid quivered in Noiz's grip, "They told me to, ok?"

"Who sent you?" Noiz pinned him to the wall.

"Some guy in glasses," he described, almost wetting himself, "He said he'd pay me to random attack someone from Ruff Rabbit. Please. Just let me go."

"Are you a no mark?"

"No."

"What team are you with?"

"Dry Juice…"

"Noiz," I stopped him, "You're going to end up breaking his arm. Loosen up a little."

"Does Mizuki know you're here?" Noiz continued his interrogation, but he let CyberLynk's arm go.

"Please don't tell Mizuki," CyberLynk begged, dropping to his knees, "I'll leave you guys alone. Just don't tell Mizuki! He'd kill me if he knew I left to play Rhyme!"

"Go," Noiz snapped, making the kid flee into the alley.

"Hey," I put my hand to our guy's shoulder. He couldn't have been more than fifteen, "Are you ok, sweetie?"

He looked up at me with the biggest, most sparkly eyes I had ever seen, "Are…Are you really…?"

"Yeah," I smiled, "Genuine article. You're BoltThief, right?"

"She said my name!" he squeaked. I had never met a fan of mine before. Other than Noiz.

"Can I call you Bolt?" I asked.

"Please do!" he nodded violently. I was afraid he was going to give himself whiplash, "You're a god to me!"

"Always nice to meet a fan," I beamed. This was so cool! I was quietly fangirling over him fangirling over me! I pried Bolt from my hip and checked on his fearless leader, "Noiz…? You're awfully quiet. You ok?"

"A lot on my mind," he shook it off. Something was killing him. I had seen the same pained look on his face once before. And that was the day we met.

"You want to talk about it…?" I worried.

"I'm sure it's nothing," Noiz figured, "Just me overthinking. Don't worry about it."

"Um…" Bolt came up to me, "TenshiUsagiChan?"

"You can just call me Angel," I insisted, "What is it?"

"Are you…" Bolt got really flustered and started turning red, "Are you doing anything later…?"

I wrapped myself around my boyfriend's arm, "Maybe Noiz, if he plays his cards right once we get back to my place."

He went from bright red to ghost in a matter of seconds, "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I didn't know you and the boss were a thing. I'm so sorry, Angel. Please forgive me! And you, too, Noiz. I'm so so sorry!"

"Relax, Bolt," I settled him, giggling a little at his advances, "It's ok. You wouldn't be the first spazzy otaku I've had to shoot down and you probably won't be the last."

"When was the first?" Noiz got curious.

"Do you not remember me telling you?" I reminded, "I was a cute cosplay girl whose go-to con outfit was a neko maid. You can't tell me that I wouldn't have otakus swooning over me."

"You got me and you weren't even in full cosplay," he pulled me closer, "Next time we play a legal match, I should get you to cosplay again."

"Are you commissioning me, Noiz?" I teased him a little.

"You have a manga to work on," he pointed out, "You don't need to be working on a cosplay commission, too."

"Can I work on it if I get writer's block?" I wondered.

"Angel…" Noiz scolded me lightly.

"Fine," I gave him as fake pout, "I'll work on my stupid manga instead."

"Watch yourselves!" Noiz warned the others, "We need to find out who's targeting us. And why. The why is really what's bothering me."

"We just need to go home and sleep on it," I comforted, "We'll figure it out and everything'll be ok."

"If anyone hears anything about what's going on," Noiz demanded, "I want to know. Keep checking the forums. And stay inside. We don't need this to happen again."

It warmed me inside to no end to see Noiz care about his team like this. They may not be the closest team, but they were pretty tight knit when it came to one of their own no matter if they were there since day one or they joined yesterday. The two of us went back to my place and crashed. I was exhausted after that fight and Noiz looked rough.

When he fell asleep on me, his face kept twitching. Like someone was poking at him. But with a needle. And not the kind he was so clearly accustomed to. It's times like these where I wish I could go into his mind and free him from whatever was holding him down. My poor Noiz. He didn't deserve this…

 **A/N: You like that? You like that little nonchalant Scrap reference at the end there? I did. I did a lot. Tomorrow's the last day. The last day of nonstop Dramatical Murder posts. Then, it's hiatus for a little while. I'll save the sappiness for tomorrow. So! What could be going on? What's got Noiz so worried? And who jumped CyberLynk of Dry Juice? Who was that mysterious man in the glasses? Theories are always appreciated…Hell…Any reviews on this would be nice. I'll see you next chapter! xx**


	10. His Name is Sweetheart

**A/N: Well. Here we are, kids. The last day of Dramatical Murder Bomb Week. I mean, it's not the end of the story. God, no. I have too much going on in my noggin to not get it down on paper for this. If I didn't continue on with this story (despite its lack of popularity), I don't know if I could live with myself. I'm not going to get too sappy here, I'll wait until this chapter's over. For now, I'm going to let you crazy kids (all 7 of you) get to reading. Kisses!**

Noiz was too cute when he was sleeping. But unfortunately, I couldn't admire it for much longer. Not all of us could be master hackers. I had to go to work. And I can almost guarantee Kyu wasn't going to cover for me two days in a row. Sorry, Noiz. You won't have me to play with for a while. I didn't have it in me to wake him, so I left a note:

Noiz,

I had to go to work.

I'm sorry. I'll be gone

for a little while. Feel

free to wait here until

I come back.

All my love,

Angel

I did a quick little doodle of a cupcake that looked like a panda, folded it delicately, put it on my nightstand, kissed his forehead, and left for the market. I dreaded the thought of going into work. Especially after last night's adventures. Whoever sent that CyberLynk kid to the Ruff Rabbit territory was still out there. Every man that came through my line wearing glasses made me paranoid.

"Hi, Angel!" Kyu chirped.

"Hey, Kyu," I took a break from my register and switched to stocking shelves. For the sake of my mental health.

"How's your little one doing?" she asked, "Is he doing better?"

"Much better," I beamed at the mere thought of Noiz, "He just needed me for the day."

"That's good to hear," she cheered, "Any idea what was wrong?"

"General exhaustion," I figured, "He kept me up the night before. I was tired, too."

"I didn't even know you had kids," Kyu said, "I bet you make an amazing mom."

"Kids?" I gave her a look, "No. I don't have kids. My boyfriend was going through some depression problems. I couldn't leave him alone."

"Oh," she squeaked, "What's wrong with Yuki?" 

There was a blow to the gut that I didn't need today, "It's not Yuki anymore…We broke up a few weeks ago."

"I'm sorry," she apologized, "New guy?"

"Yeah," I started to feel my spirits lighten a little more, "Better than Yuki. Much better than Yuki."

"As long as you're happy, Angel," Kyu empathized, "Isn't your lunch break coming up?"

"What about it?"

"If you want," she insisted, "I'll go with you. I mean, it's the least I could do."

"No," I shook my head, "I appreciate the sentiment, Kyu, but I'm good. Don't worry about me."

"Unless you have plans with the new boyfriend," Kyu pried, "What's he like? Is he cute? Does he have a brother?"

"Honestly, Kyu!" I rolled my eyes, "Do you really need to know?"

"I'm curious," she shrugged, "I dig. I meddle. You know me!"

"I'm going on break," I finished my last shelf and started heading outside. Ideally, I'd be going for a drink, but I was still relatively on the clock. Showing up to work after my lunch break drunk wasn't the plan.

I felt a pair of hands snake behind me, covering my eyes, and a face nuzzling into my neck, "Guess who?"

"Noiz…" I blushed, "I have to work here. What are you doing here?"

"I figured you were about to go on your lunch break," Noiz spun me around, "I got your note."

"I was hoping you would," I winced, "I didn't want to leave, but…"

"I understand," he settled me, "Hey, skip the rest of your shift. I have a surprise for you."

"I can't skip the rest of my shift!" I shoved him, "I'll get fired for that. I have bills and rent to pay."

"You don't have to pay your rent for the next three months," Noiz told.

"How do you figure?" I gave him a look.

"An anonymous source took care of it."

"And by anonymous source," I already knew.

"Yeah…I'm the anonymous source."

"Noiz!" I squeaked, "You don't need to do that! I thought we've been over this!"

"Well…" Noiz looked down at his feet, "Do you think I could trouble you for one last surprise?"

"Fine…" I caved, "But this is the last one! You spring anymore of them on me and I will kick you so hard in the shin, you'll have to have my foot surgically removed."

"You'd be my favorite tumor," he teased, "Now, come on. Skip the last half of your shift."

"Why do I have to skip work?" I wondered, "Is the surprise that big?"

"It's a very time sensitive surprise," he explained.

"Hey, boss!" I stuck my head in the door.

"What, Angel?" he called back, almost sounding annoyed with me.

"I have to go for the rest of the day," I cringed, bracing myself for the verbal lashing that was sure to follow.

"For what?" my giant of a boss fee-fi-foe-fummed* his way to the entrance.

"For me," Noiz stepped in, "I called earlier."

"Oh, yeah," he remembered, "Go ahead. See you later, Angel."

"Bye…" I took Noiz's hand and the two of us left the store, "You talked to my boss? What's that all about?"

"Yes," Noiz nodded, "Yes, I did. You have the next two weeks off."

"What?!" I had a brief heart attack, "What do you mean, I have the next two weeks off?"

"Just that," he pulled me along (because I really don't think I could make my legs function anymore), "Now, would you like to hear your surprise?"

"You mean that wasn't my surprise?" I needed to sit down or I was going to pass out. The two of us sought refuge at an outdoor café.

"No," Noiz kept his voice down, "With everything that's happened in the past twenty-four hours, I think you and I need to get out of town for a while."

"We're leaving Midorijima?" I prepared a napkin to catch my impending nosebleed.

"Yeah," he went on, "We're leaving more than just Midorijima. We're leaving Japan altogether."

"Noiz," I stopped getting excited and started getting nervous, "What's going on?"

"I don't know," Noiz sighed out, "And I don't like not knowing. I just have a really bad feeling about what's happening and I want you safe."

"Ok," I wasn't going to dig any deeper. I could see it in his eyes. Whatever was going on was really tearing him up, "So, where are we going?"

"I got tickets for the two of us to go to the US," he showed me the confirmation email, throwing my ticket over to my Coil, "You've been meaning to visit your parents anyway, right?"

"Noiz!" I was so done with him. I didn't know if I wanted to kiss him or kill him or push him into traffic. Not that there was much here anyway, but still, "This. This is too much. I can't ask you do to this for me."

"Then, I'll ask you," he turned the tables, "Angel, will you go visit your parents with me?"

I cradled my face in my hands, more than done with him, "Yes, Noiz. I will go visit my parents with you. If I don't kill you first."

"You wouldn't, though," Noiz pulled me back up to my feet and I fell into his chest, "I think you like me."

"Kind of," I fake pouted, "Jury's still out for that."

"Don't give me that."

"I still have to go home and pack," I let out a heavy, exasperated sigh.

"Agatha's got it," he assured, "She's been packing since I left."

"Noiz," I rested my head on his shoulder, "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Noiz kissed my temple.

"But…" a disturbing thought popped into my head, "It's going to be kind of weird."

"Why's that?"

"Well," I cringed, "My parents adored Yuki. They have no idea we broke up."

"Then, they'll love me," Noiz promised, "I'm better than Yuki."

"Oh, by leaps and bounds, baby," I assured.

"It'll be ok," Noiz put his arm around me, "If they don't like me off the bat, they'll learn to. That's how it works with everyone I meet."

"I liked you right off the bat," I smiled, "I mean, I kind of thought you were a little bit of a dick, but I got over it quick."

"That's my girl," he praised, "Come on. We need to get to the airport."

"When does our flight leave?" I worried.

"In…" Noiz looked down at his watch, "Forty-five minutes."

"Don't we have to grab our bags yet?" I freaked.

"Already there," he brushed it off, "We're good. All we have to do is get on."

"Super."

The two of us hightailed our asses to the airport. I still couldn't believe that we were about to get on a flight and go visit my parents. I had a feeling there was something that Noiz still wasn't telling me. He wasn't taking me back to the States out of the goodness of my heart. He was hiding me. From what, though? Or who?

But at least I finally got to see firsthand Noiz with airport security. He tapped me on the shoulder and mumbled something to me, but I couldn't make it out. He left me in line and I watched as he took off to the bathroom. When he came back, we were almost to the metal detector.

"Hey, Angel," Noiz wrapped his arms around my waist, "Think you could do me a favor?"

"What's that?" I looked up at him.

"We're about to approach the metal detector," he pointed out, "And my face is about twenty-five percent metal. And I know how much you love taking them out."

"My pleasure," I grinned, starting with the plug in his right ear.

"I already got three of them," he reported, "I just need you to get the rest."

I felt under his shirt and found the one in his belly button and the two in his nipples. Huh…I thought those were the three. As I pulled the rings out from their respective locations, it got me thinking, "Noiz, where were the three you said you took out already?"

"You didn't hear me when I went into the bathroom?" a dirty little smirk stretched its way across Noiz's face, "I told you I had some rings below the belt to take out, so my crotch wouldn't start beeping and I'd be right back."

"Oh…" I blushed. Wasn't expecting that. I knew Noiz had all sorts of things pierced, but that kind of threw me for a loop.

"Sorry," Noiz nudged me, "I wasn't expecting for us to go anywhere out of the country when we first met. I was hoping you'd be able to find those yourself."

"I found most of the other ones myself," I pulled the ones in his eyebrow out, "I didn't know you had any in your hands and I wasn't opening your mouth while you were sleeping."

"Yet you still took my lip rings out."

"I had all the others," I shrugged, "Got a little carried away."

"You got mine," Noiz's hands moved toward my ears, "I might as well get yours, right?"

He pulled on the backs of my earrings and pulled the studs through, sending such a chill through my body. I wasn't sure if it was him being so close or him actually touching my very sensitive ears, but I shook in his arms. Without another word between us, we made it through airport security and onto our plane. It had been so long since I had been back home. I couldn't wait to fly into San Diego…

 **A/N: Well, guys. The end of the first Bomb Week. I'm pretty proud of us. We stuck it out together. This was a very experimental thing for me. I'm exhausted and my brain feels like it's going to melt out of my ear, but I'm glad I did it. Granted, this still isn't as popular as what I wish it was. They can't all be my Black Butler fic, right? Not looking gift horses in the mouth, though. I gained a follower this week! And welcome, welcome, new follower. But I'm sorry to say that this will now begin its hiatus until July 4** **th** **. Next week is Ouran High School Host Club's turn for a Bomb Week! And I can't wait for Monday. Kiss, Kiss is going to get kind of interesting (and I'm kicking off that Bomb Week with a heart wrencher…). So is this, though! There's a trip to the US about to happen! And when we come back in July, we'll see how that goes. So, until then, my friends…I'll see you next chapter. xx**


	11. His Name is Mink

**A/N: Hi, guys! Welcome back! It feels like AGES since I wrote something for Dramatical Murder and I missed you all terribly! All 7 of you! And I missed writing for Dramatical Murder so much that I had to write a one-shot during (I think, don't quote me) Fullmetal Alchemist week just to pull myself through! It's called About Time and if you haven't read it yet…It's adorable. It's an Aoba x Koujaku one-shot about something that happened one night when Koujaku spent the night. It's absolutely precious. I loved it so much and I squee so much when I reread it. And I really want you to love it, too. Buuuut! Since we've been gone for so long (what feels like an eternity), how about a recap, yeah?**

 **So, Noiz is a little jumpy about things going on around Midorijima after one of his guys got hit in a Rhyme drive-by, so he surprised Angel with a little trip (along with paying three months of her rent, so she can work on her manga) to her home country. They should be making a landing in San Diego shortly…Let's watch, shall we?**

"So, this is San Diego, huh?" Noiz scoffed as the two of us got off our flight.

"This is just the airport," I rolled my eyes. Just had to fall in love with a complete cynic, didn't you, Angel?

"I've never been to San Diego before," he confessed, "Cut me some slack."

"Is this your first time in the US altogether?" I wondered, standing at baggage claim.

"Once," Noiz grabbed our bags, "East coast. I had to go to New York for a business trip. It's my first time on the west coast."

"It's a whole different ballgame out here," I took his arm, "And I really hope you packed lighter clothes."

"No," he shook his head, "Why?"

"Because you'll roast!" I squeaked, "This is southern California, Noiz. It's constant sunshine and warm weather and I refuse to take you to the hospital for a heat stroke when I know it can be prevented."

"So, what do you propose we do?" Noiz got us a cab.

"Before we do anything else," I put my foot down, "We're going shopping."

"For…?"

"You, dumbass…" I groaned.

"Fine," he agreed, "We should check into our hotel first."

"Ok."

This was going to be a long, taxing, grueling layover. And I had a feeling that I was going to have the strong desire to punch Noiz by the end of the day. It'll keep him from burning alive in the hot California sun. that's all that matters. It doesn't matter how much kicking and screaming is done or how big of tantrums are thrown. It'll be worth it. As long as I come out with Noiz on the other side, I'll call it a win.

Noiz and I dropped our luggage off at our hotel and took off for a mall toward the center of town. With Agatha on my shoulder and Noiz's hand in mine, the threw of us started out at a store with a black sign and white stenciled lettering. It looked rather promising. I hope.

"What's this place?" Noiz wondered as heavy alternative music roared around us. Sounded like the Used…

"Are you serious?" I gave him a look, "You're screwing with me, right?"

"I just asked a question."

"You can't tell me you've never been in a Hot Topic before," I stared in sheer disbelief. He had to have been screwing with me. Noiz looked like he rolled around in the clearance bin here once or twice.

"Sorry to disappoint," he said with sincerity in his eyes, "I've never been in a Hot Topic before."

"You're serious…?" I remained skeptical.

"Yes, Angel," he swore, "I haven't."

"Not once…?"

"Never."

"I have a hard time believing that," I chuckled to myself, "But I guess fact is stranger than fiction."

"It was a rarity I left my house before I met Aoba," he reminded me, "I did all my shopping online."

"Can I ask you something?" I held Noiz's hand and rested my head on his shoulder, making the biggest, most sparkly eyes I could muster up.

"Sure."

"Do you trust me?" I asked.

"Honestly," Noiz got nervous, "No."

"Well, trust me," I demanded, "I know exactly what I'm doing."

After half an hour of me going nuts through the store, grabbing tank top after tank top after pair of shorts after pair of shorts after ten minutes of Noiz whining, the two of us left the store and headed out. I must admit, I should've done this with Noiz a long time ago. He was hiding way too much under all the layers. He had to have some sort of workout regimen. There was no way that body of a damn supermodel happened out of nowhere.

"You know," he shrugged on our way out and into the blazing heat, "I actually do feel kind of better."

"I told you so," I smirked, "Trust me, Noiz."

"I guess I can do that," he nudged me a little, "Where to now?"

"As much as I'd love to go lay on the beach for a while," I sighed, "I have a feeling you'd whine even more. And I've put you through enough today."

"Ha, ha," Noiz laughed sarcastically, "Do you think I could get a guided tour?"

"Really?" he piqued my interest.

"Yeah," Noiz threw his arm around me, "You intrigue me. I want to see how TenshiUsagiChan happened. This is the origin story."

"Because the blood sample you took from me didn't tell you enough?" I teased.

"The Coil can't tell me memories."

My heart…That was possibly the sweetest thing Noiz has ever said to me. Maybe even ever. He seemed so self-centered when we first met. But the fact that he actually wanted to know more about me and where I came from and how I became the person he knew and possibly loved. Noiz hasn't exactly told me he loved me. But I'm sure he will one day.

"You want to see my origin story?" I smiled, "Ok. You can see my origin story."

Noiz and I began our adventure through downtown San Diego. Don't get me wrong. I loved living in Midorijima, but God, it was good to be home in my favorite place in the world. And the two of us went everywhere. From my old apartment building to one of the cafés I worked at and frequented when I'd be either sketching out a design for a new costume or working on a story idea. Occasionally, I'd get stopped in the street by otaku boys that remembered me from my cosplaying days. Should've known better to come around here during con season, Noiz…

Finally, he and I stopped outside my more primary day job. I'd work at this flower shop during the day when boyfriends and husbands alike found the need to vent their relationship problems and how much they screwed up to me and the café at night when all the hipsters drunk on boxed wine and PBR would come in to stare at my boobs. Fortunately, my boss at the flower shop adored me, so I only had to deal with one of those.

"Hey," Noiz stopped me outside the shop, "I'm going to check in with the team. I'll be right back."

"Ok," I allowed, "Send them my love. Enjoy your bear claw."

"Bear claw?" Noiz gave me a look, "What do you mean?"

"The fact that we just happen to be next to a bakery," I pointed out, "And you're going to check in. I know you, Noiz. You have a sweet tooth from hell."

"That I do," he nodded, "I'm going to check in with the team and get a bear claw."

"That's what I thought," I kissed his cheek, "Go ahead. You know where I'll be."

"Ok."

I left Noiz to devour half the bakery and I went into the flower shop for nostalgic purposes. Nothing's changed. Everything was just the same as it was when I left three years ago. And it still smelled just as sweet as the first day I walked in for an application. I wonder if it's under the same management. It had to be. There was no way he would've gotten rid of it.

A big, pink cockatoo flew over to the front counter and stopped on his perch. Nope. He was still here. I jumped behind the counter and took a small cigar from the box next to the register to put in his beak, "It's good to see you again, Angel."

"Hi, Tori," I pet his feathers.

"Who is it, Tori?" a deep, thunderous voice boomed from the back, "Customer?"

"Mink!" I called back.

"Angel?" the boss bolted through the hall and back into the shop, "It is you!"

"It's been ages!" I leaped into his arms.

"Where have you been?" Mink chastised me.

"I moved with Yuki," I reminded him.

"That's right," he sat with me, "Midorijima, right?"

"Yeah."

"Does your showing up here mean you're coming back?" Mink kept his fingers crossed.

"Unfortunately, no," I broke the news, "I'm just in town for a layover. I'm on my way to my parents' house."

"And I'm assuming Yuki's with you?"

There was something I didn't need today, "No. Actually, about Yuki and me…"

"Oh," Mink immediately saw the error of his ways, "I'm sorry to hear that."

"Don't be," I snapped back with a smile on my face, "I found someone else."

"Local?"

"He lives in Midorijima," I clarified, "But he's not from there."

"Oh," he chirped, "Your kind of local."

"Oh, Mink…" I sighed out, hopelessly lovesick, "I love him so much. He's been so good for me. He's actually next door right now!"

"I need to meet him," Mink put his foot down, "He needs my approval."

"Ok, ok," I settled him, "No need to get so protective."

"Someone needs to look out for you."

"Hey, Agatha," I opened my bag and her little head popped out, "Think you could do me a solid?"

"Sure, Angel," she chimed, "What do you need?"

"Go next door and get him, please," I asked, "Make sure he's not in a bear claw coma."

"Ok!" Agatha jumped out of my bag and bounced next door to the bakery.

"Was that an Allmate?" Mink wondered.

"Yeah," I nodded, "She's a dwarf panda. He's got one, too."

"Oh, Angel," he gave me that look of possible disappointment, "You didn't do something stupid like get yourself involved with a Rhymer, did you?"

"I'm one of the best Rhyme players in the world, Mink," I pointed out, "I am a Rhymer. It'd only be natural for me to fall for someone else involved in it. Besides, he's the leader of a team."

"Angel," he scolded, "You're a good girl. You need to stay out of that. You have a bright future ahead of you. That's not going to happen if you're playing Rhyme."

"I'm retired," I could see the vein sticking out of Mink's forehead, "I don't play anymore."

"But he does?"

Ding!

"You called for me, Angel?" Noiz walked in, "Agatha said you wanted me for something. She wasn't very specific."

"That's because she didn't know what Angel wanted you for!" Agatha snapped.

"Noiz…?" Mink froze.

And by the look on Noiz's face, the feeling was mutual, "So, this is where you've been hiding, Mink…"

"What the hell are you doing with her?" he grumbled.

"I could ask you the same thing," Noiz jumped on the defensive.

Joy, "I take it you two know each other…"

"We took down Platinum Jail together," Mink told, "What happened with you and Aoba?"

"He left me," Noiz said, pulling me to his hip, "And I found her."

"He's a really good person, Mink," I assured, "I'm the one that put him back together. Aoba practically left him a drooling mess."

"Exaggerating a little, Angel," Noiz blushed.

"No," I reminded, "You were a mess. I remember it plain as day."

Mink got in his face, "If you ever hurt her…"

"He won't," I separated the two before fisticuffs could happen, "He's not Yuki."

"What did Yuki do?" Mink switched tangents. When it came to me, he could be very easily distracted.

"He cheated on me, Mink," I explained.

"Do you need me to kill him?"

"No," I rolled my eyes, knowing he wouldn't have hesitated, "I found Noiz and it's been uphill ever since."

"If you dare hurt her," Mink glared a hole through Noiz's soul, "I promise you, Noiz. You will answer for it."

"Mink!" I stopped him.

"I worry about you, Angel," he pulled me away from Noiz, wrapping his massive arms around me, "Especially when I'm not there to protect you."

"I'll be fine," I wiggled out of his embrace, "Noiz has already defended my honor. Yuki was being a grade A dick. Even kicked him off his Rhyme team for me."

Mink put his tail between his legs, "Is that true?"

"He didn't deserve our protection," Noiz defended, "And he didn't deserve her. If you were that worried about her, you would've prevented Yuki from ever happening in the first place."

"Noiz!" I kicked him in the shin, "We should be going. It was really good seeing you again, Mink."

"You, too, Angel," Mink hugged me one last time, making me shiver. The sweet smell of cinnamon filled my nose, "Be careful."

"I will," I grabbed Agatha off the counter, who was trying to chat up Tori, and the three of us left Mink's shop. I was in desperate need of our bed and maybe some room service. I forgot what it was like walking around San Diego. It's exhausting. I threw myself on our bed.

"Hey!" Agatha whined, rolling off the edge, "You might want to watch your landing!"

"You're fine," I helped her back up, "I'm sorry, Noiz. I didn't realize you and Mink had history."

"It's fine," he assured, holding me against his chest, "You want anything to eat? I'm starving."

"You," I teased him a little. I knew what was under that tank top.

"You're not a cannibal," Noiz grabbed the menu out of the drawer, "I'm sure there's something much better on this list."

"Fine," I scanned the menu over. It all sounded incredible, "Surprise me."

"Alright," Noiz called down to the restaurant and I laid with my head in his lap. I started drifting in and out. Yeah. I wasn't making it until food got here. I was jetlagged something fierce and all I wanted to do was sleep. Especially with the position I was in.

 **A/N: Ok. First of all, Noiz is a Hot Topic trash baby. I guarantee if we were to look in his bookmarks on his computer, the Hot Topic website is one of them. And I love him for it. Why? Because…Well…I'm kind of a Hot Topic trash baby. And that whole birds of a feather thing. But getting back to other things. Mink. I love when he gets all protective and I love even more that Noiz was being a little shit about it, too! HE'S SO CUTE! I'm trying not to gush. Can you tell? I'm going to try and bring in everyone eventually. You'll see. See you next chapter! xx**


	12. His Name is Chase

Five o'clock came early and all I wanted to do was go back to sleep. I looked around our hotel room and there was no sign of Noiz anywhere. He wouldn't have done something stupid like left me, would he…? No. Noiz said he had never been to this side of the country. He'd have no clue of how to navigate it. Then again, nothing was stopping him from hopping a flight back to Midorijima.

"Aggie," I nudged the little panda sleeping on the nightstand, "Agatha, wake up."

"What?" she whined, rolling over.

"Do you know where Noiz is?" I asked.

"Lobby," Agatha leapt over to me, nuzzling into my belly, "Can I go back to sleep now?"

"In a bit," I promised, opening my Coil, "Good news, though."

"What?"

"By the looks of the weather in Royalton this week," I smiled, "You'll get to splash around in more than just the bottom of the shower."

"Really?" she immediately perked up, "You mean it, Angel? You're not screwing with me?"

"Nope," I showed her my screen, "Rained last night. Still raining now. Should be over by the time we get there."

"Yay!" Agatha squealed, "I get to splash in puddles!"

I guess even Allmates have simple pleasures. Although, Agatha has always been a little spazz. Ever since I got her. I'm glad Noiz didn't program that out when he was installing her virus protection and adding her affection for him.

"Angel," the door opened, "Are you awake?"

"Hey," I sat up in bed, almost knocking Agatha off me, "Where were you?"

"There was a Starbucks in the lobby," Noiz handed me a cup, "I got you something caffeinated and blended all to hell. I figured you'd be good with that."

"Thank you," I moaned through my straw as the ice cold coffee swished around in my mouth.

"You're welcome," he pulled me out of bed, "Are you ready?"

"Give me five minutes," I quoted him, taking my coffee with me into the bathroom. I turned the shower on and grabbed some clothes out of my bag along with my toiletries bag.

"Angel?" Noiz chimed through the door, "You're not doing something strange like showering with your coffee in hand, are you?"

"There are two kinds of people, Noiz," I called out, "People who do shower coffee and people who are wrong. Trust me. It's an experience."

"You're weird."

"You still love me!"

"Kind of."

As soon as I was out of the shower, I was barely dressed and the two of us were back in the sky. Goodbye, San Diego. You will be missed. Greatly. It was kind of nice being back home. Even if it were only for a day. I forgot how much I missed living in the US. I missed it here. I missed my coffee shop and the flower shop and Mink and Tori. This was home to me.

And as we were nearly set to land, my new home wrapped his arms around me, "So, is there anything I should know before we get there?"

"You mean my parents?" I chuckled under my breath, "All they care about is you treat me decently."

"Anything else?" It was so cute to see him so nervous over meeting my parents.

"Well…" I cringed, my good feeling not lasting very long, "There's one thing…"

"What?" Noiz's embrace tightened around me.

"You might want to take the metal out of your face," I insisted, "My dad's kind of judgmental."

"Ok," Noiz got a jumpstart, starting with the rings in his eyebrow, "I kind of saw that one coming. Can I ask you something?"

"Of course, baby," I cuddled into him.

"We'll still be us if your parents don't like me, right?"

"Duh," I assured, "I love my parents to death. Don't get me wrong. But my love life is none of their business. They don't decide. I do. If they don't like you, that's too bad. This is merely a formality. Whether or not you have their approval is their own problem, not ours."

"You might want to be careful," Noiz warned, "Talk like that makes you more attractive."

"That whole freewill thing?" I giggled a little, "Or the strong, independent woman that don't need no man thing?"

"A little bit of both," he kissed the top of my head.

As the plane came to a landing, I breathed my way through the slight turbulence and we grabbed our luggage. I was almost a foreigner here. I hadn't been back home in a few years. Whenever my parents wanted to see me, they'd always come to me. A foreigner in a familiar land…Noiz and I stood on my parents' front porch.

"Alright," I shook a little, "Ready?"

Noiz took my hand, "Ready."

"You took them all out?" I worried.

"All of them except the gauges," he assured.

"All of them?" I had a feeling that wasn't entirely true.

"All of them," Noiz spoke with his usual slight lisp. Not all of them…

"Noiz," I gave him the mom voice, "You still have the hardware in your mouth, don't you?"

"Damn," he pouted, sticking his tongue out, "I thought you wouldn't have caught those."

"I ask so little," I sighed out, pulling the bar through his tongue and the ring from underneath, "You're so lucky I like you."

"I feel naked," Noiz put them in his pocket.

"It's only for a little while," I promised him, knocking on the front door, "Until we can get to a hotel. Then, they can all go back in."

"Ok," Noiz gripped my hand a little tighter. He was genuinely nervous. Normally, I'd find it adorable, but he was terrified. This was actual torture. Waterboarding would've been kinder.

"Angel?" a soft, sweet voice chimed from behind the door, "Angel?!"

"Hi, Mom," I surrendered to her bone crushing embrace.

"What are you doing here?" she squealed, ushering us in, "I thought you weren't going to be home until next year!"

"Well," I explained, "Here I am."

"Who's this?" Mom caught sight of my new boyfriend standing behind me.

"That's not Yuki," Dad wasn't too far behind her.

"No," I could feel my blood pressure rising, "He's not. This is Noiz. We met in Midorijima."

"He doesn't even look Asian," Dad pointed out, making me physically cringe, "Do you speak English?"

"Ich bin Deutcher, du arschloch," Noiz grumbled.

"Noiz!" I snapped at him.

"You understood me?" he gave me a look.

"I always know choice phrases in foreign languages," I told, "That's about the extent of my German."

"What did he say?" Dad wondered.

"That it was nice to meet you, too," I glared a hole through Noiz who had a dirty little smirk on his face, "As for Yuki and me…"

"Yeah," Mom asked, "Why isn't he with you?"

"He cheated on me, Mom," I sat at the island in the middle of the kitchen, "If I never see him again, it'll be too soon. But fortunately, I found Noiz and everything's been good since."

"That's good, sweetie," she chirped, "It's a pleasure, Noiz."

"Angel!" a familiar little voice squeaked, tackling my leg.

"Chase!" I sat my favorite little cousin up on my hip, "Hey, baby. You didn't tell me he was going to be here!"

"To be fair, Angel," Dad went back to his spot on the couch and thumbing through the channels, "You didn't tell us you were going to be here either."

"Touché," I agreed.

"Angel," Chase pulled at my tank top, "How long are you going to be here?"

"I don't know," I looked over at Noiz, "A couple days? Yeah?"

"It's open ended right now," Noiz picked at where his dermal piercings in his hands would normally be, "We could be here for a few days. We could be here for a week or two. No rush to get back."

I saw worry deep in Noiz's eyes. There was something bothering him. Definitely something bothering him. And it wasn't being here. It was our reason for being here. Seeing my parents was just the excuse for us leaving Midorijima. But there was something bigger going on. I put Chase down on my barstool, "Excuse us. Noiz, can I talk to you outside?"

"Sure," he followed me out to the back porch, "What's going on?"

"I'm about to ask you the same thing," I sat on the cement stairs, "What's going on, Noiz? What have you heard from back home?"

"The team's ok," he reported, "There's a rumor going around that's a bit unsettling, but it's just a rumor. I have my sources on it. Nothing to worry about."

"Is that why we're here?"

"Yes," Noiz sat with me, throwing an arm around my shoulder, "I wanted you out of the potential crossfire. If the rumors are true, I really don't want you caught up in it. Because there would be a good chance I would get caught up in it and they'd end up hurting you to get to me."

"So, that's it?" I started to settle, "That's all that's going on?"

"Well, I did get a call yesterday from my brother," he admitted, "There's a good chance that I might have to make a trip to the motherland."

"That sounds like fun," I rested my head on his shoulder.

"I'd be gone for a couple days," Noiz went on, "Three days at most. If he calls me back either tonight or tomorrow, I'll have to be on the next flight out. Would you be ok if I left you here while I made a quick business trip?"

"I couldn't come, too?" I wondered.

"You wouldn't want to," he assured, "Trust me. I made that mistake once. Never again."

"Sure," I teased, "I introduced you to my family, but heaven forbid you reciprocate."

"Pretty much."

Noiz could be such a dick. But he was my dick. And I wouldn't trade this asshole for the world. All he wanted to do was keep me safe. And if I get to see my family in the process, why not? So be it. I guess it's a win-win.

"Hey, Angel?" my mom opened the back door, "Could you do me a favor and go to the store for me? I have a list."

"Sure," I got up, "You coming, too?"

"No," Noiz shot me down, "I think I'll stay here."

"You sure?" I wasn't expecting that.

"I'm sure," he nodded.

"Ok," I gave him a kiss goodbye and grabbed my mom's list off the counter. Jesus, she might as well have had me doing her grocery shopping. Not too bad, though. I'll be alright. A little surprised that Noiz didn't come with me, though.

So, I brought Agatha instead. She was still sleeping in my bag after the flight. I figured I'd hold off on introducing this little cutie to the family. But she did say she wanted to splash in some puddles. There was a very good chance I'd have to clean her off later, but that's what her little raincoat was for, right? As soon as we got to the grocery store, I sat her in a baby seat in the cart.

"Why am I riding in the cart?" she pouted.

"Because I don't want you getting stepped on," I explained, "And I'm not sure if I can even have an Allmate in here. That's why you're in the cart."

"What are we here for anyway?" Agatha looked around, "And why doesn't the market in Midorijima look like this?"

"I'd probably be working here if I never moved to San Diego," I shivered, "I keep forgetting this is your first trip to America, Aggie. The thing about Americans is that they're rather gluttonous. Of course the grocery stores are going to be big like this. They're not all like this, but most of them are."

"I'm not a baby," she pointed out, "Do I have to ride in the baby seat?"

"No one will think twice," I rolled my eyes, throwing a gallon of milk into the cart, "When we leave the store, I noticed a giant puddle when we walked in. You can play in it all you want. Jump in the puddles. Roll around in them. I don't care. Just be careful where the water gets and have a ball. And if you behave yourself while we're in the store, I'll get you a bottle of oil and a bag of screws on the way home."

"Promise?" Agatha's eyes lit up.

"I promise."

She might have been a pain in the ass, but I loved Agatha to death. She was my best friend. Is it sad to say that she's an Allmate? And I could just program her to love me and not have it of her own free will? A little bit. But I didn't. That wouldn't happen until Noiz got a hold of her. And because I loved her, I grabbed a small bag of screws and a bottle of oil for her and the two of us left the store undetected.

Right next to the cart return was a massive puddle. That pothole had been in this parking lot for as long as I could remember. The city never bothered filling it. It had almost become a local landmark. I put our bags in the back of my mom's car and dug Agatha's little coat and matching boots out of my purse.

"Alright, Aggie," I got her properly dressed, "Are you ready?"

My tiny panda had the biggest grin on her face, "I'm ready."

"Have at it," I opened the driver's door and sat in the car while Agatha splashed in the puddle. I had never seen her so happy over something so insignificant. All she did was stomp around in a rain puddle and I might as well have taken her to Disneyland. I guess it really was the little things.

As soon as Aggie was all tuckered out from playing in the puddle, she and I went back to my parents' house with the few items Mom wanted. When I walked in, she immediately grabbed the door, "Don't let that slam!"

"Ok," I mimicked her hushed tones, "Why?"

"Chase is taking a nap in the living room," Mom grabbed some of the bags from me, "Thank you, Angel."

"No problem," I peeked my head around the corner into the living room and sure enough, there was my three-year-old cousin out like a light. On the shoulder of my boyfriend, who was still watching whatever cartoon Chase probably forced him into watching with him. I loved that kid. He could make friends with a brick wall. Even one like Noiz. I joined the two of them on the couch, "You realize you just made a little buddy, right?"

"I thought so," Noiz whispered, "I didn't have the heart to move him."

"I wouldn't either," I rested my hand on the tiny cheek not on Noiz's arm, "Poor baby's been through too much."

"What do you mean, too much?" he wondered.

"Just that," I reiterated, "When Chase was still practically fresh out of the womb, his mom was on her way to work, her first day back, and she got into a really bad car accident. Ever since then, he kind of imprinted on me and I've been like a surrogate mother figure for him."

"I could tell," Noiz held him a little closer, "Just by the way you were with him and he was with you when we first walked in. I know what it's like, though. Not quite to his extent, but I get it."

"You do?" I nuzzled into Noiz's open shoulder.

"I practically raised myself," he told, "No kid should have to do that. Maybe he and I are kindred spirits. Never really liked kids until now."

"So, you're saying if I were to get pregnant," I entertained the possibility, "You'd be pissed off about it?"

"This isn't your way of telling me you are, is it?" Noiz groaned, "Because that would make it Yuki's kid."

"No," I assured, "I'm not pregnant. I'm sure your Coil would've told you when you took my blood. I'm just saying."

"If you were to get pregnant now," Noiz thought it over, "And they were half as cool as Chase, I'm sure I'd be ok with it eventually."

"That's comforting, Noiz," I said sarcastically, "I really appreciate that sentiment."

Honestly, I did. He wasn't completely closed off by the idea of us having kids. It was far too early to even give that consideration at this point, but seeing him with Chase gave me hope. If Noiz raised himself, I'm sure he'd make one hell of a dad one day. Today wasn't going to be that day, obviously, but far enough down the road if he and I are still together…I wouldn't oppose to it.

 **A/N: Hi, guys! First of all, I know. I'm trying to get that 3PM update time, but sometimes, it doesn't happen. Today is one of those days where it didn't happen. However! On the plus side! This fic finally gOT ITS FIRST REVIEW! YAAAAAYYYYY! You don't have to be shy, guys. I don't bite…Hard. *Noiz is aroused* And to the person that left it, you're awesome and I'll fit my precious, sweet, angel, baby, actual cinnamon roll Clear in here somewhere. I already have an idea for it, but we have to wait until we're back to Midorijima for that. Speaking of, that rumor…Keep an eye on that rumor. That's going to be a little bit of a catalyst for the shenanigans to come. Until then, see you next chapter! xx**


	13. His Name is Travis

I couldn't have asked for dinner to have gone any smoother. It was just the stock questions. The obvious how we met and what our first date was like. Fortunately, Yuki was never mentioned. As soon as we were done eating, I joined my mother in the kitchen and helped her with the small pile of dishes on the counter.

"Hey, Mom," I put a stack of plates in their proper location, "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure, sweetheart," she shot another squirt of soap in the water, "What's up?"

"What do you think of Noiz?" I wondered, "Honestly."

"Honestly?" Mom thought it over, "He's got kind of a chip on his shoulder. Like the world owes him something."

"He's lived a hard life," I defended. My heart shattered just thinking about it. It hit way too close to home.

"The world can't be that bad," she figured, "He's got you, doesn't he?"

"That he does," I smiled, turning a glowing shade of pink.

"By the way," Mom stopped herself mid-washing, "How many holes does that kid have in his face?"

"What?" my stomach dropped. I wanted to keep Noiz's piercings under wraps as much as I could.

"You act like I can't tell," she smirked, "Angel, I grew up during the height of the punk movement. I know what facial piercings look like when they're out. I counted four."

"It's more than four," I sighed, "Let's just leave it at that."

Because the last thing I wanted to tell my mother about was my boyfriend's dozen piercings between his ears, the five in his face, the two in his tongue, the four in his hands, the two in the back of his neck, the two in his nipples, the one in his bellybutton, and the three in his dick. She may have grown up in the height of the punk movement when everyone was piercing everything, but she's never met Noiz. It was the closest he could ever get to feeling pain. To feeling alive.

"Well," Mom looked out into the living room, "Chase seems to like him. Even though he's a walking pin cushion."

I peeked over her shoulder to see my cousin on my boyfriend's lap with Blue's Clues on the TV. Noiz's arms were wrapped around the little one, holding him steady, "That's amazing…"

"He'll hardly play with any of the other kids at daycare," Mom told, "But for whatever reason, he loves Noiz."

"I can't blame him," I felt a warmth in my heart radiating to my toes, "What does he do at daycare all day then?"

"He draws."

"That's my boy," I beamed, oozing with pride, "I was the same way and I turned out ok. I'm sure he will, too."

"We're hoping so."

Mom was worried about Chase. I could see it all over her face. I understood her completely. But so what if he's a shy kid? Maybe he's just around the wrong group of kids. I knew exactly what that was like. Liked to read and draw pictures, too. And I turned out fine. Hell, I might be combining my love of the two and selling a manga series that could turn into an anime series. A girl can dream.

I put the last fork away and joined Noiz and Chase on the couch, "Ready to go, baby?"

"Where are you going?" Dad asked, immediately jumping on the defensive.

"We're getting a hotel," Noiz took Chase off his lap, "I'm severely jetlagged."

"I'll be back tomorrow, Dad," I promised.

"You're leaving, Angel?" Tears welled up in Chase's eyes.

"Tomorrow," I wrapped my arms around him, "Then, it'll be you and me for the day. How's that sound?"

"Ok!" Chase was all smiles again. That could've gotten very messy very quickly.

I gave my little man a kiss on his cheek and took my big man's hand. As soon as we got to our room, I threw myself onto the California king in the middle of the room. Noiz wasn't the only one who was wickedly jetlagged. I had been through way too many time zones in the past forty-eight hours.

"So," Noiz crawled in next to me, "It'll be just you and Chase tomorrow, huh?"

"That's right," I snuggled into him.

"What are you doing tomorrow?" he asked.

"We'll be meeting up with an old friend of mine," I explained, "Since I've been gone, he's kind of kept an eye on the baby for me. Chase goes to his sister's daycare. He knows my uncle really well."

"You do know," Noiz cradled me against his chest, "You're not going without me, right?"

"There's no way of surprising you, is there?" I assumed.

"You already surprised me once," he pointed out, "I didn't expect for you to give me your number when we met."

"So, I can't have another one?" I pouted.

"I'll let the rest of it be a surprise," he compromised, "Is that alright with you?"

"Thank you," I yawned, "Can I go to sleep now?"

"Of course you can," Noiz kissed the top of my head and I instantly clocked out.

When I woke up the next morning, the little angel was still sleeping under me. Nothing gave me a good warm and fuzzy feeling quite like seeing Noiz sleeping. Sure, it sounds kind of creepy, but he looked so peaceful. Like nothing else in the world mattered. Even with all the metal back in his face where it belonged. But if he wanted to come with Chase and me so bad, he was going to have to wake up.

"Noiz," I nudged him, "Noiz, wake up."

Nothing. This kid was a rock.

"Noiz…"

Still nothing. If I didn't know any better, I'd think he was dead. Not dead, just sleeping heavily. I had to make an appointment for this and we still had to pick up the little one. I didn't want to have to do this, but it had to be done. As soft and delicate as humanly possible, I peeled Noiz's shirt up, revealing the little eight ball in his bellybutton.

Dare I do it? Do I want to be that bitch of a girlfriend? I gave him one more nudge and not even a twitch. I love you, Noiz…And I really hope you still love me after what I'm about to do…Please don't leave me in the US. I want to go back to Midorijima with you…

I buried my face right under his rib cage and started blowing raspberries on his belly. I was, indeed, that bitch of a girlfriend. Sure enough, slowly but surely, my sweet, loving, forgiving boyfriend glared down at me, "What the hell are you doing?"

"Good morning," I smiled back, hoping that would soften the blow.

"Again," Noiz kept his annoyed expression, "What the hell are you doing?"

"You wouldn't wake up," I defended, playing with his eight ball, "I had to find another way of doing it."

"Why do I have to wake up now?" he whined.

"Because you wanted to come with us so bad," I reminded, "And we need to be there as soon as possible."

"Why?" Noiz tried to roll back over, but I wouldn't let him.

"Because it's time sensitive and he doesn't have all day," I woke Agatha up, too.

"Morning, all," she chirped, "A beautiful day, isn't it?"

"Super," Noiz still sounded pretty pissed at me, "Try having your girlfriend wake you by blowing on your stomach and see if you're still saying that."

"Noiz," I rolled my eyes, "All you need is a little Red Bull and you'll be ok."

"Blueberry," he pouted.

"Ok, baby," I promised, "I'll get you a blueberry Red Bull on the way."

He could be such a pain in the ass, but I'll keep him. I grabbed Noiz's Red Bull from the gift shop downstairs and we took off in our rental to pick up Chase. I'm sure my uncle wouldn't mind if I were to play with his son for the day. He didn't get off work until five anyway. I'm sure we'd have him back by then.

"Where are we going, Angel?" Chase bounced in his car seat.

"We're going to Phoenix," I started the car back up, "Noiz, did you get his seat strapped in?"

"Yes," Noiz rode shotgun, "Where's Phoenix?"

"It's a shop downtown."

"Do we get to see Travis?" Chase squeaked.

"I need to see Travis," I nodded, "He has something for me."

"Is Travis the friend?" Noiz figured.

"Yes."

"Was he…" Noiz got all adorably flustered, "Was he ever more than a friend…?"

I looked over at my boyfriend steaming in the passenger seat. I couldn't believe it. I never thought I'd see the day, but Noiz was actually jealous. I had to settle him down a little. I still felt bad for the way I woke him up, "No. Travis is like the older brother I never had. If he and I were to ever have been more than friends, it wouldn't sit right. I love him, but that's not going to happen. Ever."

"Ok," he started to calm down a bit as I pulled up to the curb in front of Phoenix, "Angel, what is this place?"

"It's Travis' shop," I grabbed my bag at Noiz's feet, "You ready, Chase?"

"Yeah!" my little cousin sang out already out of his buckles.

"Angel," Noiz stopped me before I could even walk in, "Is this a tattoo shop…?"

"Yep," I pushed the door open and let Chase in first.

"Hey, little buddy!" a familiar voice greeted him, "What are you doing in here by yourself, Chase? You're a little young for any of this yet. Pretty sure your old man's working today, too."

"Travis!" I ran into his arms, wrapping my legs around his waist.

"Angel?!" Travis squeezed me tighter, "Hey, doll! What are you doing in town? I thought you were in San Diego!"

"That was yesterday," I came down from my excited high, "Oh, honey. We have so much to catch up on."

"Sorry, dude. Customer," Travis put me down, "Can I help you?"

"I'm with them," Noiz clarified.

"Travis, this is my boyfriend Noiz," I introduced, "Noiz, this is my brother Travis."

"Brother?" Travis gave an over exaggerated gasp. Always was a drama queen, "Me?"

"Yes, you moron…"

"Pleasure to meet you, Noiz," Travis shook his hand, "What do you see in her?"

"Everything that everyone else glances over," Noiz pulled me to his hip, "Those are the best parts."

"I like him," Travis approved, "So, Angel, you ready?"

"Ready for what?" Noiz jumped down my throat.

"You keep an eye on the baby," I ordered, pulling the tiny panda out of my bag, "Aggie, you, too. Hey, Chase!"

"What?" Chase looked up at the shiny toy in my hands, "What's that?"

"This is Agatha," I set my Allmate on the tile floor, "Agatha, this is Chase."

"What am I supposed to do with him?" Agatha wondered, "Do I bite him?"

"No," I gave her a little swat on the nose, "Chase, Agatha is really special. You think you can take care of her for me while Travis and I catch up?"

"Ok!" Chase lit up like a damn Christmas tree. He had never seen an Allmate before, let alone been this close to a dwarf panda. The two of them ran off to a corner of the shop.

"Angel," Noiz grabbed my wrist, "What are you doing?"

"Getting a tattoo," I took my cardigan off, "Is that ok with you?"

"Kind of a turn on," he mumbled.

"That's what I thought," I gave him a quick kiss, "Go keep an eye on those two. Travis and I need to catch up and you know my feelings for him."

"Fine," Noiz joined Chase and Agatha while I sat in Travis' chair.

"So…" he put his stencil on, "That's the new missus?"

"Yes," I rolled my eyes.

"What else has been going on with you, Angel?" Travis got everything ready.

"I moved from San Diego," I began, "There was this guy I was dating for a while and we ended up moving to Japan together…"

"Japan?!" he freaked, "What the hell did you move all the way to Japan for?!"

"For love," I let out a heavy hearted sigh, "Then, he cheated on me, I ate my feelings for a while, and then, Noiz kind of fell into my lap. He was sort of in the same boat as me and we've just been taking off from there."

"And your tattoo?" he wondered, "When I got your email, I kind of thought you were on drugs."

"I'm kind of a part of a team in Midorijima," I went on, "When I first saw their tag art, I knew I had to do a little bit of a redesign of it to make it fit me a little better, so this was the end result."

"And this team…" Travis always was the worried big brother, "It's not a street gang, is it?"

"There is the occasional territory dispute," I admitted, "But it's not that bad. It's more of a team than a gang. It's surrounded by this game, Rhyme, that I'm really good at and I'm kind of a legend. Their leader's a really good dude. He doesn't see it, but he treats everyone on our team like family."

"I'm glad you found somewhere you feel at home, kid," Travis put the needle to my skin and started carving out the design, "You doing ok?"

"Yeah," I brushed him off, "It hurts like hell. Don't get me wrong. But I'm good."

"You're not just trying to tough it out for me, are you?" he teased.

"No," I giggled, "I'm good."

"You got more of a pain tolerance than I give you credit for…"

Sometimes, when I've been away from home for so long, I don't realize how much I miss everything around here and everyone I love until we're reunited. I had the same feeling in San Diego, but nowhere to the degree I got it here. I did have my west coast family, but coming back to the hometown. That put me back to a time when I couldn't wait to get out of here.

I was eighteen and counting down the days until I could get back to San Diego. I had been saving every single dime I made working and every birthday card I got from my grandma since my eighth grade graduation. I had plenty to get me into a studio apartment in San Diego. And the day I graduated high school was also my eighteenth birthday. I couldn't have been more excited. I didn't get an ounce of homesickness until I had been living on my own for a year and my parents finally came out to visit me. The longer they were there, the more I wanted to go back with them.

"Hey, Angel," Travis wiped my arm off, "I'm all done. Lookie."

I looked down at my forearm to see the new Ruff Rabbit tag art permanently embedded into my skin, "Thank you, Travis."

"You're welcome, doll," he kissed the top of my head, "I must say, it's pretty badass."

"I like it," I beamed, "Hey, Noiz…"

"Yeah?" Noiz poked his head around the corner.

"I have something I need to tell you," I bit down on my bottom lip.

"Is everything ok?" he worried, sitting next to me.

All I did was show him my arm and I saw the light in his eyes shine a little brighter, "I'm coming out of retirement."

"Angel…" Noiz's voice broke, "Is that Usagimodoki?"

"With a pair of wings," I smiled, "I doodled while you were gone the other night."

Noiz wrapped his arms around me, "You were supposed to be working on the manga."

"I know," I nuzzled into his chest, "I'm officially no longer a no mark. Morphine won't come for me."

His embrace tightened at the mention of Morphine, "No. No, they won't."

"You guys needed some new tag art anyway," I kissed his cheek.

"Hey, Travis," Noiz asked, "Do you do piercings, too?"

"Yeah," Travis squeaked, "Why?"

"I'm thinking about getting number twenty-eight," he shrugged.

"Seriously?" I gasped, "You have room for another one?"

"You got a tattoo," he pointed out, "Why not?"

"I can do that," Travis agreed, "Where are you wanting it?"

"Will you do dick piercings?" Noiz asked.

"No!" Travis cringed, "Ouch! Why? Not without a field sobriety test first…"

"Is three not enough for you?" I asked.

"THREE?!" I thought Travis was going to pass out, "Why, in God's name, would you have done that THREE TIMES?"

"Why not?" Noiz looked over at me, "Angel?"

"No," I put my foot down.

"Why not?"

"No."

"But…"

"No."

"But…"

"No," I had to pull out the mom voice.

"Fine," he caved, "I'll wait until I get back to my guy in Midorijima."

"You have a really weird taste in guys, Angel," Travis nudged me as I glared a hole through Noiz that could liquefy his kidneys.

"Not when I get back to my guy in Midorijima?" he figured.

"No!" I was ready to swat him so hard with a newspaper. Or a cast iron frying pan.

"Food?"

"Yes!"

I had always heard that people naturally calm down once they have a full belly. Maybe that's why I ate my problems. I paid Travis for my tattoo and kissed him goodbye. As much as I wanted to stay and hang out with him, I'm sure little one probably was, too. I'm not entirely shocked that Noiz picked pizza. Or that he sniffed out the best place in town.

I remember many a birthday here. Except for my eighteenth. I got on a plane right after graduation. Damn near missed my flight. What is with me today? I'm awfully nostalgic. I mean, I understand it's my first full day back in town, but still. Even this is a bit excessive.

Ring, ring.

"Hold on. I have to take this," Noiz looked down at his Coil, "Hey, Theo."

Sure enough, Noiz left me with Chase and stepped outside, "Hey, Angel…"

"Yeah, sweetheart?"

"Who's Theo?" he wondered so innocently.

"I don't know, Chase," I let out a heavy, depressed sigh, "But I have a feeling Noiz may be leaving soon…"

 **A/N: I think we can stop there for today, yeah? No? Well…This is awkward then. It's a pretty massive chapter. I thought about breaking it up, but thought, naaaah…So…Getting back to Angel's tattoo, I'm going to be drawing it and putting it on my Tumblr eventually. If you don't know my URL, it's LumiOlivierLithium. I'll be tagging it all to hell, so if you search the Dramatical Murder tags, I'm sure you'll end up finding it eventually. See you next chapter! xx**


	14. His Name is Joel

That phone call was taking too damn long. I knew what was going on. I knew what that was all about. I couldn't feel my heart coming out of my chest and sweat dripping from my hands. I had never hoped so bad in my life for this to be nothing but me overreacting. That's all this was. Just a big misunderstanding. Moment of truth…

"Hey," Noiz sat back down.

"Hi," I dreaded the worst, "Everything ok?"

"That was my little brother," he couldn't even look at me, "He's going to need me for a few days."

"Noiz," my voice broke a little as I took his hand, "Don't go."

"Don't worry, Angel," Noiz raised my hand to his lips, gently kissing my knuckles, "I won't be gone long."

"You'll come back," Chase worried, "Right, Noiz…?"

"Of course I will," he promised, "And leave Angel behind? I couldn't do it."

"So, when are you leaving?" I asked flatly.

"I have to be on the next flight," he cringed, "I don't want to go either, Angel. I don't want to leave you here by yourself, but I also don't want to make you go through the hell of being by yourself for most of the time while we're there."

"Where are you going?" Chase wondered with wide eyes.

"Germany," Noiz told, "The way I see it, you could either come with me and hardly see me. And when you do, I'll be too exhausted to do anything. Or you could stay here with your family until I got back."

"Fine," my demeanor hadn't changed, "Go. I'll stay here."

"Thank you for understanding," he gave me a kiss, "It's only a few days."

"I know," I wrapped my arms around his waist, "Call me when you get there."

"I will," he assured, "No matter the time?"

"No matter the time."

"I love you," Noiz's kiss deepened. He knew something wasn't right.

"I love you, too," I let him go. As soon as he was out the door, I felt a lump swell in the back of my throat, "Come on, Chase. We should get home."

I took the long way back. The drive would help me clear my head. It would only be a few days. Then, Noiz would be back in the US and everything would be ok. And we could go back to Midorijima. I'd be coming out of Rhyme retirement, despite what Mink had said. Everything will be fine.

As soon as Chase and I got back to my parents' house, all I wanted to do was lay down. My head was killing me and rooms didn't want to stay still. As per usual, Mom was screwing around in the kitchen while Dad was watching a movie in the living room. I made sure the light pink, winged version of Usagimodoki on my arm was covered. They would kill me if they found out I got a tattoo.

"Hi, honey," Mom greeted me, "I'm pretty sure I saw three of you leave this morning. Where's Noiz?"

"On a flight to Germany," I sighed.

"Oh, Angel," she sympathized, "I'm sorry. I guess it wasn't meant to be. You're young. You're cute. You'll find someone else."

"Um," I wasn't sure if I should be embarrassed or pissed off, "He's coming back. Noiz is only going to be gone for a few days. He's taking care of some business for his brother."

"Oh!" Mom chirped, "Well, now, I just feel silly."

"I'll be in my room," I walked down the hall and up the stairs to the shrine to my adolescence. To be honest, though…I hadn't changed much. If I hadn't taken all my figurines from here when I moved to San Diego, it wouldn't look much different from my apartment now. Only my apartment's bigger. My taste in anime hadn't really changed. My taste in video games hadn't changed. My taste in music hadn't changed. I was still the same…

I threw myself on my bed, put my headphones on, and proceeded to cry my eyes out. It sucked being by myself. I hadn't been away from Noiz for longer than maybe a day since we met. It still felt like yesterday when Noiz knocked on my door at midnight after a really bad one night stand and I had to open up the cosplay closet just to make him feel better. Right now, I could use something to make me feel better. And the only thing that could do that at this point is setting off metal detectors at the airport. So, I had to settle for the next best thing.

I pulled the dwarf panda out of my bag and tapped on her forehead, "Agatha, I'm feeling down."

"Don't worry, Angel," she jumped onto my belly, "He'll be back. The next few days will go by and you won't even realize he was gone."

"Already feels like he's been gone forever," I felt another wave of tears come on. I needed to shut that down ASAP.

"Hey," Agatha's little paw swiped my face. I think she was trying to go for a slap, but it horribly backfired, "Shut your mouth. He'll be back. He's not leaving you forever. Suck it up. You'll be fine. You got along fine when you didn't have him last time."

"Last time I didn't have him," I reminded, "I had just broken up with Yuki. Bad analogy, Aggie. Bad analogy."

"You get what I mean," she brushed me off, "Your wallowing is completely pointless. Yes, I get it. It'll be hell for a few days. But in the grand scheme of things, it'll only be a second. You're going to be ok, Angel."

I pulled the little panda against my chest, swallowing the second wave, "You always know what to say, don't you?"

"It's in my programming," Agatha cuddled.

Thanks, Noiz. I have a feeling he added that when he was wrist deep in her wiring. Then again, Agatha has always been sweet with the occasional dash of salt, but I'd still keep her. If she wasn't so damn cute, I would've gotten rid of her a long time ago. I could've had a bird. I could've had a dog. I could've got a cat. Hell, I could've gotten a lion. But no. I got the little panda with an attitude problem.

I knew exactly how I could pull myself out of this. Granted, I was still a little depressed, but I knew someone that could cheer me up. He was too adorable to not have a smile on my face in his presence. I grabbed my Coil off the nightstand and scrolled through my contacts.

"Hello?" a sweet little voice answered on the other end.

"Hi, Bolt," I had an instant smile on my face.

"Angel!" he spazzed, "Hi! You're calling me! What's up?"

"Nothing," I kicked my feet over the edge of my bed, "What's going on there?"

"Everything's fine," Bolt reported, "We haven't heard anything."

I knew better. And as much as I didn't want to do this to sweet, lovable little Bolt, he'd probably be the easiest one to do this with, "What's been going on, Bolt?"

A long pause at the other end gave me chills, "Just following orders from the boss."

"You're not going to tell me, are you, sweetie?" I assumed.

"Sorry, Angel," Bolt cringed, "Just what Noiz told me."

"I understand." Damn. Don't get me wrong. I love Bolt to death, but I honestly thought it wouldn't take much to break him.

"Where are you?" he wondered, "When Noiz called us the other day, it didn't look like he was in Midorijima."

"America," I filled him in, "We were visiting my family, but Noiz got a call from his brother and he's on his way to Germany."

"You guys need to come back here," Bolt begged, "We miss you."

And I melted. Between Bolt's innocent voice and the image I had in my head of the entire Ruff Rabbit team, I couldn't, "I miss you guys, too. Don't worry, Bolt. Noiz will be back in a few days and then, we'll probably come back home."

"The sooner, the better."

"I have to go, honey," I cut him off, "See you soon."

"Bye!"

I threw my Coil back on the nightstand and a few tears escaped my eye. I loved being here. I loved being back home with everyone. I loved being back in San Diego and seeing Mink again and getting catcalled by the otaku boys that remembered me from the old days. But I wanted to go home. I wanted to go back to Midorijima so bad.

Until I heard my door slowly creak open and a soft, little voice on the other side, "Angel…? Can I come in?"

"Sure, Chase," I pulled myself together, "What is it?"

My little cousin jumped up onto my bed and sat in my lap, "Are you ok?"

In those three words, I just wanted to cry some more. But I couldn't. He didn't need to see that. I had to keep it together for the sake of the kid, "I'm fine, Chase. You don't need to worry about me."

"Ok," he rested his head on my chest, "I have to go now."

"Is your dad here?" I figured, holding the little squirt tight.

"Yeah."

"Chase!" I could hear my uncle calling up the stairs, "Where did you go?"

"I'm in Angel's room!" Chase yelled back.

"What are you doing in here?" he pushed the door open, "Angel!"

"Hi, Joel," I smiled a bit, "It's been a while."

"Yeah, yeah," he nodded, "Chase, why don't you go downstairs and let me talk to Angel for a bit?"

"Ok," Chase gave me a little kiss on the cheek, "Bye, Angel. I love you."

"I love you, too, baby," I put him down on the floor and Chase scurried down the stairs, "How've you been?"

"I've been better," Joel shrugged, "But I've also been worse. What about you? I heard your boyfriend was slutting around."

"Ex-boyfriend," I clarified, "You don't get to meet my boyfriend this time around. You just missed him. I'm sure Chase is going to talk your ear off about him on the way home, though."

"Why don't I get to meet him?" he pouted.

"He had to make a business trip," I explained, "He'll be back in a few days and then, we'll probably go back to Japan."

"By the way," Joel gave me a smirk, "I heard you went to visit Travis today."

"He's one of my best friends," I pointed out, pulling at my sleeve out of reflex, "I'm not in town often. Of course I'm going to go see Travis."

"Show me."

"What?"

"Angel," Joel gave me a look, "I know he did something for you. I'm not like your dad. I won't kill you over a little tattoo. Come on. Show me."

"Fine," I caved, pulling up my sleeve, "It's the tag art for a team I'm on in Midorijima that I tweaked a little bit. The original's colors are different. It's originally green and a really dark, dark blue, but I switched it for pink and black. And the eyes are usually vertical bars, but I switched them to x's instead."

"You drew this?" he looked my arm over.

"Yeah," I blushed.

"For tag art, it's pretty beautiful," Joel critiqued, "Trav did a nice job on it."

"Thanks, Joel…"

"Look, kiddo," he kissed my forehead, "I have to go. I'll see you later, ok?"

"Ok," I nodded and just like that, my uncle and my favorite cousin were up the driveway.

And I went back to weeping eternally into my body pillow. I never really had much of a desire to ever go to Germany. But now? It was the only place I wanted to be. It had the one thing that the States didn't…I miss Noiz. Can he come back now?

 **A/N: Sad face. I miss him already, too. But once Noiz comes back, then we can go back to Midorijima and find out all the shenanigans that are going on over there. And Angel's going to come out of Rhyme retirement! Speaking of! I've been meaning to say this for the past update or two. I'm sure I'm not the only one that has let Pokemon Go consume their life recently. And as soon as I started playing it, my first thought when people started talking teams was that if we have the technology for Pokemon Go, how much longer do we have to wait before we end up getting Rhyme? I would play Rhyme. TenshiUsagiChan would be a reality. And along with Rhyme would come Allmates, too! And I put way too much thought into this. I don't know about you guys, but I'd be pretty stoked about getting Rhyme…See you next chapter! xx**


	15. His Name is Todd (and His Pal Devin Too)

That's it. I'm done wallowing. Yes, I still missed Noiz terribly, but there was no sense in spending my day in bed. For the sake of my mental health, I decided to take a walk. A bit of fresh air and physical activity could work wonders.

"You haven't played it yet?" a couple of boys stood on the corner, "It's this game from Japan called Rhyme. You can beat the crap out of each other and never take any damage in real life, but somehow, you can still feel it. It's amazing! People in Japan have been playing for years, but it's finally come to the US!"

"I want to try!" the other go really excited.

"Excuse me," I stepped in, "Were you guys talking about Rhyme?"

"Yeah," the older one of the two looked me over, "Why?"

"I wanted to try Rhyme, too," I told, keeping my prowess under wraps.

"You'd chip a nail, sweetheart," he scoffed, "This isn't a game for a delicate girl like yourself."

"Really?" I kept a level head, but I wasn't taking that, "Do you two have Allmates?"

"Yeah," he nodded, "I don't mean to brag, but I'm pretty good. I'm a level thirty Rhymer."

Oh, how cute! I remember when I was a level thirty and thought that meant something. As I stand here a level two hundred ninety-eight, "Do you think we could play a round or two? You know, just for fun?"

"Why should we bother wasting our time?" the younger one shared the other's arrogance. It's times like these where I'm glad I got out of here.

I had to stoop to their level, "If you both fight and beat me, I'll give you a kiss. On the mouth, no tongue."

"Alright," the older one agreed, "Let's do this."

"Agatha," I took my dwarf panda out of my big hoody pocket, "You ready to pwn some noobs?"

"Always," she sang as the Rhyme field dropped around us. I wish we had the code for the Ruff Rabbit field. Would've been nice to have the home turf. The default was good, too. It brought me back to the old days when I first started playing.

 _A challenger approaches._

 _Username: TenshiUsagiChan_

 _Versus: DigitalRIP and JPAwesome_

 _FIGHT!_

Jesus, these kids really bit off more than they could chew. One of them was a sad level thirty and the other had never played in his life. It's so adorable when the little Chihuahuas think they can play with the Rottweilers. Even their usernames sounded douchy. Very Major League Gaming, lives on Mountain Dew and Doritos, says they had sex with my mom on the team chat in FPS games.

Even their avatars were dumb. They both reminded me of Yuki and that thought made me nauseous. I mean, right down to the animalistic headdress. Yep. These two were going to be bugs on a windshield. Piece of cake.

"Hey, Aggie," I looked to my Amazonian warrior standing strong next to me, "Should we jerk them around a little?"

"I don't know," she yawned, "I'm feeling kind of lazy today. It's kind of a Netflix binge type of day."

"Seriously?" I rolled my eyes, "So, you're thinking more along the lines of wham, bam, thank you, ma'am?"

"If you don't mind."

"Alright," I gave her a nod, "Jubilation. Make it a good one."

"Got it," Agatha grew her massive sword and knocked these two morons out in one hit.

 _Winner: TenshiUsagiChan_

The Rhyme field fell and we were out of there. Little boys that try to play with fire end up with their fingers burnt. And I, for one, was proud to be the spark that taught them a lesson. But because they were them, they couldn't accept their defeat.

"Hey!" the older one yelled at me, "That wasn't fair! You hustled us!"

"No, I didn't," I kept walking, "You made assumptions. Not my fault."

"You cheated!" the younger one screeched.

"No, I didn't," I clarified, "I live in Japan. I'm a seasoned Rhyme vet. I'm on a team. I'm one of the best. It's not my fault you underestimated me. You should've kept your guard up."

I loved when I got accused of cheating. That usually meant that the other person couldn't accept that I was that good. If I would've dragged the fight out longer, they still would've said I was cheating. Their cockiness was their downfall. I wouldn't have bet that kiss if I didn't know already that I could take them. His first mistake was telling me his level. His second was still taking the fight.

"We'll be back!"

"This isn't over!"

"Yeah, it is!" I waved behind me, taking some pride in my victory. That wasn't even fun. That was just scratching at a mosquito bite. I left the whiny kids behind me and turned off into the park. I loved this spot. This was where I took a lot of my cosplay pictures when I was in high school. Granted, I'd end up getting something thrown at me and have to do them over the next day, but this was still a beautiful spot.

Ring, ring.

"Hi, baby," I answered my Coil with a smile on my face.

"Hey," a tired voice grumbled on the other end, "You alone?"

"Alone enough," I sat on one of the benches, "What's up?"

"I can't sleep," Noiz sighed, "I miss you."

"I miss you, too," my heart ached, "Only another couple days. We can do this. Did you just get in?"

"Yeah," he said, "I would've called you earlier, but I didn't have the time."

"You sound exhausted," I worried, "Are you ok?"

"Yeah, yeah," Noiz brushed me off, "Don't worry about me, Angel. I'm fine. Just jetlagged."

"You need to get some sleep," I damn near pulled out mom voice.

"I also need to talk to you…"

Ok. He was making it way too hard to not buy a plane ticket to Germany right here and now. And as much as I loved him and as much as I loved to hear his voice, I had to think of him, "Take a couple of sleeping tablets and go to bed, Noiz. You can call me in the morning."

"But…"

"Noiz," I scolded lightly, "Bed."

"Fine," he caved, "I love you."

"I love you, too…"

Click.

I did all I could to keep myself from crying then and there. I missed him. If and when I ever meet his brother, I may have to punch him. I could feel Agatha crawl out of my pocket and onto my shoulder, nuzzling her little face in my neck. She knew the kind of hell I was currently living in and all she wanted to do was make it all better. At this point, the only thing that could make it better would be some plane tickets.

"Hey…" the guys I kicked the snot out of in Rhyme found me.

"What?" I growled, sounding more like a bitch than what I intended.

"We're really sorry about earlier," the older one apologized.

"We didn't realize who you were," the younger one followed suit, "I'm Todd."

"I'm Devin," the older one introduced himself, "If you'd have us, we'd like to be on your Rhyme team."

"Sorry, boys," I shot them down, "Not my call. I'm not the leader. The one you're looking for is currently on a business trip in Berlin and trying to get some sleep."

"Who's your leader?" Todd asked.

"My boyfriend," I got up, "It's his team."

"You should branch out!" Devin suggested, "We could use someone like you. You'd make a hell of a leader!"

Dear God, these two were like a couple of lost puppies looking for a home. I found it a little endearing they wanted me. After they wrote me off before seeing what I could do. Actually, it was kind of cute. They were willing enough to throw themselves at my feet. I might as well take advantage of it, "Alright. I guess I can expand the team to American shores."

"Thank you, TenshiUsagiChan," they sang.

"Boys," I settled them, "It's just Angel. You don't have to use the screen name."

"Is there anything we can do for you?" Todd volunteered.

"Yeah," Devin agreed, "Anything at all?"

"Well," I thought it over, "I'm kind of parched. You think you could go to the café and score me a cold green tea?"

"Yes, ma'am!" they both saluted me and scurried off. This was going to be a fun afternoon.

I had these boys fawning all over me! Todd and Devin were mine. They'd ask me for Rhyme tips, general life advice, how to talk to girls (because treating them horribly got them so far), anything their little hearts desired and all they wanted to do in return was my nitpicky, pain in the ass things I didn't want to do. So, what did I do? I spent some quality time in the park.

I drank my weight in green tea and I would've killed for some mochi, but there was nowhere in this Midwestern American town I was going to score mochi. I'd have to go to one of the bigger cities in any hopes for finding something like that, but alas. I'd live. I could wait until Noiz and I got back to Midorijima. Back to our real team. These two were just desperate.

"Have you no shame?" Agatha asked.

"Not at all," I kicked my feet up on the park bench, sucking down my sixth green tea of the day, "I have my tea in mass quantities. I have you. No complaints."

"What would Noiz say about this?" she retaliated, "You taking these two boys and making them your personal errand runners."

"He wouldn't have a problem with it," I shrugged, "With the way they were talking to me earlier, Noiz would've probably punched them. Instead, I'm using them for slave labor. They have it coming."

"So, no shame at all?"

"Nope," I moved Agatha from my shoulder to my lap and called out to Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Dum, "Hey, boys? Think you could do a little something, something for me?"

"What is it, Angel?" Todd rushed to my side.

"What do you need?" Devin wasn't too far behind him.

"I need you to go to the hardware store," I commanded, "Get two bottles of high performance synthetic motor oil and a pound of washers, ok? Can you do that for me?"

"Yes, ma'am!" they agreed, taking off to the hardware store around the corner. Good riddance.

"What was that you were saying?" I gave Agatha a dirty little smirk, "I have no shame?"

"Is it my birthday?" Agatha wondered, "High performance, Angel? Look at you, getting fancy."

"Agatha…"

"Alright," she curled up into a little ball on my belly, "I have no shame either. But those washers do sound really good right about now."

"That's my girl…"

 **A/N: I feel like I had to cut this chapter a little short. I kind of had a bit of a break down earlier today and I couldn't really get anything done. But fortunately, I managed to pull myself together and here we are. And can I just say this real quick? I miss Noiz…I'll see you next chapter! xx**


	16. His Name is Soon

As much fun as it was having these boys at my beckoned call, I had to let them go for the day. I was tired and I wanted to go back to the hotel. Kind of nice having my own personal minions of evil. Granted, I wanted to punch them upon our initial meeting, but kicking their asses instead was much more satisfying. And using them as footstools. Don't get me wrong. They were good kids. Just misguided.

I threw myself onto the bed and I didn't want to move. Agatha climbed out of my hoody pocket and sat on the nightstand, "You know, he'll be back. You'll be fine. Noiz isn't leaving forever."

"I know," I grumbled, "I just wish he didn't have to leave in the first place."

Ring, ring.

"Speak of the devil," Agatha tossed me my Coil.

"Hey, baby," I answered the call, "What's up?"

"You told me to call you when I woke up," he reminded me, "I'm on my way to the office right now, but you were my waking thought, so here we are."

"Here we are," I smiled, reveling in the sound of his voice, "When are you coming back? I miss you."

"I miss you, too," Noiz made my heart so warm, "I should be back relatively soon."

"Promise…?"

"I promise," he swore, "And as soon as I come back through the US, we're going back to Midorijima. I haven't heard anything on that rumor front, so it should be ok."

"Noiz," my voice broke. Not sure where the hell that came from, "I miss Midorijima so bad. I want to go home. I want to go home with you."

"I know, Angel. I know," he settled me, "I'm kind of getting a little homesick, too. Soon, ok? Can you hang in that long for me?"

"I'll try," I pouted.

"On a brighter note," Noiz diverted my attention, "What have you been up to since I've been gone?"

"Well," I giggled to myself, "I managed to score two new Ruff Rabbit recruits."

"We're not taking any new members," he sounded confused, "And I don't remember giving you the authority to bring on anyone new."

"They think they are," I clarified, "Rhyme has come to the US and these two boys thought they were better than me. You know how chauvinistic dicks can be."

"Considering I am a chauvinistic dick."

"No," I shot him down, "Don't do that to yourself, Noiz. I'll get on the next flight to Berlin and personally kick the crap out of you."

"Oh, no," he chuckled, "It's true. You just don't get to see it much."

"But they were level thirty and thought that meant something," I had a flashback to the corner, "I thought it was cute. So, I kicked ass and took names and they wanted to join the team. They think they're Ruff Rabbit, but in reality, they were more or less my personal slaves. They're not really Ruff Rabbit. Just morons."

"That's my girl," Noiz praised.

"See?" I pushed Agatha over, "I told you he'd be proud."

"Alright, alright," she accepted defeat, "I get it. Noiz would've been proud of me. They had it coming."

"Relax, Agatha," I rolled my eyes, "I know Noiz better than you do. I win."

"Yes, you do," Noiz confirmed, "I'd think so."

"Who are you talking to, Wil?" a voice in the background chirped.

"Don't worry about it," Noiz brushed him off, "I have to go."

"Ok…" I had no idea what the hell was going on.

"I'll explain later."

"Come on, Wil," the voice persisted, "Who is it?"

"I said, don't worry about it," Noiz snapped.

"I love you…" I kept my voice down.

"I love you, too," he murmured.

Click.

Huh…That was weird. And why did he call him Wil? Noiz said he'd explain later and I was going to hold him to it. But I'd much rather just hold him at this point. Trying to fall asleep without him was really starting to suck something awful. Pillows weren't cutting it anymore.

When I got to my parents' house the next morning, all I did was lay on the couch. I would've been in my bedroom, but I figured slight human interaction would've been better than complete isolation. And I don't come home often.

"How you doing, baby?" Mom worried, "You doing ok?"

"I miss Noiz," I let out a heavy, depressed sigh.

"You'll be alright," she assured, "When's he coming back?"

"I talked to him last night," I reported, "He said he'd be back soon. I didn't get any specific day. He just said soon."

"Well, Angel," Mom pulled me off the couch, "You can't mope anymore."

"I can and I will," I buried my face in the cushion.

"No," she put her foot down.

"Angel," Dad stepped in, "She's right. You can't just lay around here. It'll only make matters worse."

"Fine," I groaned, taking my mother's car keys off the counter, "I'll be right back."

"Where are you going?" she asked.

"The grocery store," I told, "Come on, Aggie. Road trip."

My little panda hopped down from the back of the couch, not even questioning my motives. She already knew where I was going. And it wasn't the grocery store. In a little town like Royalton, I wasn't getting sake from the grocery store. I had to go to the liquor store a town over to get something like that.

So, I went back to my parents' house, went up to my room, and spooned my massive bottle of sake. Halfway through my depressive drinking (and halfway through the bottle), I had the most brilliant idea. Let's call home. I had started to cheer up a little. Sake had the tendency to do such things to me. I grabbed my Coil off the nightstand and went through my contacts.

"Hello?" the other end chimed at me.

"Hey, Bolt!" I squeaked, "What are you doing right now?"

"Hi, Angel," he sang, "I'm on break. Isn't it sometime around ten at night where you are? Don't you think you should be sleeping?"

"Noiz isn't here," I whined, "So, what's going on back home? Pass or fail, because I know you can't tell me what's really going on."

"Everything's good," Bolt promised, "Our guys are in one piece. We're good. When are you coming back?"

"Soon," I repeated Noiz's words, "As soon as Noiz comes back here, he's going to get me and then, we're hopping a plane to San Diego. And from San Diego, we'll be flying into Midorijima. And from Midorijima, we'll be…Well, we won't have anywhere else to go because we'll be home!"

"Angel," Bolt worried, "I miss you and I love talking to you, but I think you should put whatever it is you're drinking down and go to bed. I know it'll be hard without the boss, but I'm pretty sure the booze will help with that."

"Fine," I agreed, "I'll put the sake down and I'll go to bed. Maybe Agatha will cuddle with me."

"No way in hell," Agatha protested, "You're too trashed to spoon with me."

"Come on," I begged, "Please?"

"No."

"Whatever," I brushed her off, "I'm going to go back to my hotel now, Bolt. I love you."

"Um…" Bolt wasn't sure what to say, "I love you, too, Angel."

I ended the call and had my mom drive me back to the hotel. There was no way I was getting behind the wheel. I wasn't too terribly drunk, but I knew how the cops around here worked. I'm not getting pulled over while I'm here. That's just irresponsible. I left my sake at my parents' house and went up to the hotel room. When I turned the light on, I saw a dozen beautiful burgundy dahlias on the bed and a card.

"A gentleman caller, perhaps?" Agatha teased me, "Any old flames in the area that might want to rekindle the relationship?"

"No," I rolled my eyes, opening the card. And my heart melted. There was only one word written inside. That's all there needed to be. There didn't even have to be a name on the card. Just that one word in scratchy handwriting gave it away.

 _Soon._

And he said he was a chauvinistic dick. No. Noiz was a sweetheart when he wanted to be and I loved it. I put my flowers in some water and crawled into bed. I needed to lay down. That sake was starting to get to my head and not in a fun way. As soon as I got comfortable and killed the light, I felt an arm slowly creep around me. If it were anyone else, I would've pushed them off me and did some kicking in unmentionable places, but I could tell exactly who this was.

"Utsukushi, konbanwa (Good evening, beautiful)," he whispered in my ear.

I rolled into his chest, "Noiz?"

"Shh…" he settled me, "Go to sleep, Angel. We have a flight to catch in the morning. I hope you said your goodbyes already."

"I did," I nodded, reveling in his embrace, "I thought you said you would still be a few days."

"When I talked to you this morning," Noiz began, "I was at the office for a total of ten minutes. After I hung up with you, I went straight to the airport and I got a direct flight. Fortunately, the boss wasn't as slave driving as I thought."

"Does that mean we can go home now?" my voice broke.

"Yes," he gave me a kiss, "We can go home now. You, me, Midorijima. I got some news on that rumor."

"And?" I wondered with baited breath, "What about it?"

"Just a rumor," Noiz held me against his chest, "Everything's going to be ok."

"Now that it's off the table," I pushed my luck, "Do you think you could tell me what it was?"

"Nope," he shook his head, "I don't want you to worry about it. Just know that it's done and over with."

"Good," I nuzzled my face in his shoulder, "I really missed you."

"I missed you, too, Angel," Noiz sighed out, "Now, go to sleep. I don't want to have to deal with your cranky, tired ass in the morning."

I missed him. I really did. But I was also tired as balls and the sake wanted to take me under. So, as per my wonderful boyfriend's request, I shut my eyes. I knew I was going to sleep like a damn rock. I had Noiz and that's all that mattered anymore.

 **A/N: Hi, guys. This was kind of a filler chapter. I wasn't really sure what I was going to do this week, but on the bright side, we got Noiz back and we kind of got to meet someone new. The "mysterious voice that called our beloved pin cushion Wil instead of Noiz. We'll see more of him. Don't worry. And next week, we'll be back in Midorijima. And when we get back to Midorijima, we're going to have a new character come into play. Also some more interaction with a character we've already mentioned, but we haven't really met yet. I don't know about you, but I'm kind of excited. See you next chapter. xx**


	17. His Name is Clear

**A/N: Alright, you guys…The moment you've all been waiting for…Definitely a moment that I've been waiting for. I'm so excited for this chapter. You don't even know. This has been a request for over a month now. In case the title of the chapter didn't already give it away…**

Being in America was nice while it lasted, but it was so nice to be back in Midorijima. I spent an entire week at Noiz's place, working my ass off on the tale of TenshiUsagiChan while also announcing my return to Rhyme and my induction into Ruff Rabbit. Unanimous decision. Big surprise there. All in all, life was going swimmingly. I dreaded the thought of going back to work on Monday, but I got a lot done between the flight home and the week I spent here.

At this point, all I wanted to do was spend a lazy Sunday in bed with my loving boyfriend. The poor baby had yet to straighten out his sleep schedule. In his defense, he had been through a million and one different time zones recently. Noiz was so cute while he was sleeping, though. Especially when his girlfriend took all the metal out of his face. He looked so innocent. Strange, but innocent. And I loved it. But on the same token, I loved his metallic face, too.

Knock, knock.

I had little to no desire to get the door. And it probably wasn't for me anyway. I nudged the sleeping cutie pie next to me, "Noiz...Noiz, door..."

Nothing. Noiz wasn't budging either. I guess I was going to get it. I left Sleeping Beauty in bed and threw on one of his hoodies. Sure enough, I always got the weirdos. Some guy in a gas mask stood at the door.

"Hello!" he chimed, "Excuse me. I think I have the wrong apartment. I'm pretty sure Noiz has never mentioned having a girl here."

"This is Noiz's apartment," I stopped him, "Are you looking for him?"

"Yes, I am!" he squeaked.

"What do you want him for?" I wondered, letting him inside. This guy seemed pretty harmless. He wouldn't try anything. At least, he didn't seem like it.

"I'm here for maintenance," he explained himself.

"Hold on," I started toward the bedroom, "He's been pretty jetlagged lately, so he's still asleep."

"That's fine," the man stopped me, "I can wait. Let Noiz sleep."

"I'm sorry," I rubbed my eyes, "But who are you?"

"My name is Clear," he introduced himself, "Noiz and I are good friends. He also takes care of my system for me."

"Your system?" I gave him a look, "You mean your Allmate?"

"No," Clear shook his head, "I mean what I said. I'm not technically human, but I'm human."

"How are you technically not human?" I got really nervous really quick.

"I'm a cybernetic intelligence," he told, "My brothers were made the way I was supposed to be, but they told me I was defective because I was different. I wanted to be human. But they said that was my defect. Because being human wasn't right. Because humans will break and die and decay. And that was their defect. But I didn't see it that way. I saw that as a beautiful thing. When a human's life ends, a new life comes from it. And the grand cycle of life begins again."

"Easy, sweetie," I stopped him, "I'm not awake enough for deep conversation. So, in simpler terms, you're technically a robot?"

"Yes."

"And Noiz takes care of you?"

"Not completely," Clear went on, "He just does the things that I can't do myself."

"Isn't he a peach?"

"No," he shook his head, "Noiz is human. He's not a fruit."

Almost unable to handle his naïve cuteness, I sat next to Clear on the couch, "I'm Angel."

"Angel?" Sweetheart came out of our bedroom, "Who are you talking to out here?"

"Good morning, Noiz!" Clear sang out with such joy in his tone.

"Morning, baby," I got up, wrapping my arms around him, and nuzzled into his bare chest.

"Clear," Noiz grumbled, "What are you doing here?"

"It's maintenance day," he reminded.

"Already?" my poor baby was still pretty dead, "Weren't you just in here for maintenance?"

"Six months ago," he nodded, "And just like you said, I'm back six months later."

"Has it been that long?"

"Yes, it has," Clear continued, "It was nice sitting with Angel, though. I wasn't expecting to find her here."

"If you're looking for a shot at Aoba," Noiz threw himself in his computer chair, "Have at it. You have my blessing."

"I can't have a shot at Master," Clear clarified, "He's already seeing someone else."

"Good for him," he murmured, ready to go back to sleep, "Let me wake up a little first, Clear. Then, we can get started."

"Ok!"

I gave Noiz a kiss in the mess of strawberry blonde hair that sat on his head, "I'm going to go get some coffee. You want anything?"

"Black, two sugars," he ordered.

"Clear?" I offered, "You want anything?"

"No, thank you," he declined.

"You sure?" I asked, "Noiz is buying."

"Don't make me regret putting you on my account, Angel," Noiz scolded, almost back to sleep in his chair.

"I didn't want you to," I pointed out, "Clear, are you sure I can't get you anything?"

"Jasmine green tea?" Clear asked.

"Sure," I was seriously considering asking Noiz if we could keep him then and there, but I had a task at hand, "Agatha! You coming?"

"Do I have a say in it?" my little roly-poly panda came tumbling out and scaled my arm, making herself comfortable on my shoulder.

"Of course not," I cuddled her a little.

"What a funny looking panda!" Clear chirped, "Is that your Allmate, Angel?"

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING FUNNY LOOKING?" Agatha jumped on the defensive.

"Yes," I nodded, "Aggie, play nice or I'll get Noiz to tweak your programming again."

"Fine," she pouted, glaring a hole through Clear.

"I'll be right back!" I waved behind me, leaving Noiz and Clear to their business. Whatever that may be, "You know, it wouldn't kill you to be nice to people."

"But it could kill me to be nice to the wrong people," Agatha defended, "You never know. That guy in there could be a complete psycho."

"Clear wouldn't hurt a fly," I promised.

"I don't know," she worried, "He seems pretty shifty."

"Trust me," I giggled, "He's harmless."

"What are we doing now?" Agatha wondered.

"We're going to get coffee for Noiz," I explained, "And green tea for Clear. And something caffeinated and blended all to hell for me. You want anything?"

"I want some of that oil we got back in America," she grumbled into my shoulder, "Something tells me we can't get that around here."

"You know," I took her into my arms, "I bet we could."

"Then, I want you to get me some."

This little pain in my ass…I threaten to reprogram her, but I know damn well I wouldn't go through with it. She wouldn't be her without being the little pain in my ass. And I didn't have the heart to get rid of her. I never thought Allmates could get separation anxiety, but this little one? She had abandonment issues. I couldn't blame her, though.

When I got her, someone couldn't take her personality, so they tried programming it out of her. Agatha was left abandoned, a half drooling mess on top of a trash can outside a shop in the Old Residential District. I brought her back to my place and put her back together. I couldn't leave her then. I sure as hell wasn't leaving her now.

I guess that's kind of why I liked Clear. Hearing him tell his story about how he was told he was defective reminded me of my own little reject. Funny how they have a way of finding me. Like I was the gatekeeper of the Island of Misfit Toys. I take the broken toys and give them a new purpose. Or maybe I just give them a home…

I grabbed Noiz's coffee and Clear's tea and my iced coffee and Agatha's pint of oil and headed back home. When I opened the door, Clear's coat, scarf, and shirt were thrown on the couch and his chest was opened up. Needless to say, that was a tad unexpected. I didn't even know what to say. The sight had rendered me speechless.

"Thank you, Angel," Noiz kept digging around in the mechanical mess in the living room, "Put it on the desk please."

"What the hell is going on in here?" I gasped.

"Clear's essentially one big Allmate," he explained, "When we took down Platinum Jail, parts of him got damaged in the aftermath. He had to override his own programming and things got kind of messy. Ever since, he's come to me for any repairs or problems he's had."

"Because you're a technological genius?" I teased.

"That's exactly why," Noiz fully accepted that title, "Aoba could've done this, too."

"Not as well as you, though, Noiz," Clear assured, "We tried that once, remember? You were on business in Berlin and it had come up to the six-month mark. I went to Master hoping he could do my maintenance, but I ended up going back to you three weeks later. And please forgive for my indecency, Angel."

"Don't worry about it, sweetie," I melted, "It's not like you can help it."

"Aoba made a mess of you," Noiz quivered, "Your wiring was all crossed and that was thirty-six hours of my life I will never get back. And now, I never make business trips around maintenance day. Clear, I need you to take your mask off."

"Why?" Clear all of a sudden got really jumpy, "Why do you need me to do that?"

"I need to see your eyes," he justified, "Now, take your mask off."

"I can't!" Clear freaked, "What if my face is gone? What if I don't have a face anymore?"

"Yes, you can," Noiz tried to settle him down, "Your face is still there. It still looks like a regular face."

"Ok..." he shook as his hands went up to his face. Clear undid the buckles on the straps and slowly took his mask off, "Is it still there...? Do I still have a face...?"

"See?" Noiz opened Clear's eyes, "It's ok. Everything's still right where it should be. And I'm almost done."

"Then, why did I really have to take my mask off?"

"Because it's creepy."

"Noiz," I growled at him.

"Sorry..." he apologized instantly.

"By the way, Clear," I put my hand to his cheek, "You have a very adorable face."

"Thank you, Angel," he blushed, "Really? You think it's adorable?"

"I know it's adorable," I smiled.

"Hey..." Noiz cut me off, "I don't need you making googly eyes at Clear."

"Are you getting jealous?" I wondered, sitting in Noiz's lap.

"No," he started to turn a little red.

"Noiz," I nuzzled into his neck, "I love you. I don't want anyone else right now. I know who I go home to at the end of the day. You don't need to worry about me."

Noiz looked away from me, a combination of shame and a little embarrassment on his face, "I love you, too…"

"Was that too difficult?" I gave him a quick kiss, "Now, finish fixing Clear and we can go back to spending this day the way it was intended to be spent."

"Ok," Noiz shut Clear's chest up and put the screws back where they belonged.

Ring, ring.

"That's not me," I said.

"It's me," Noiz owned up to it, "Angel, you think you could grab that for me?"

"I'm not your secretary!" I squeaked, "You can get it yourself."

"No, I can't," he assured, "I'm still wrist deep here."

"Fine," I grabbed Noiz's Coil off the table, "Hello?"

"Angel?" a soft, sweet, panicked, little voice answered on the other end.

"Bolt," I beamed, "Hi, sweetie. What's up?"

"Can I talk to Noiz?" he begged, "It's really important."

"I'm right here, Bolt," Noiz chimed in, "What's up?"

"We got guys missing."

 **A/N: Aaaaaaaand we end it on a cliffhanger. So much for spending that lazy Sunday the way it was meant to be spent. Now, see, things are about to get a little exciting around Midorijima. But for now, can we just focus on one thing? I FINALLY GOT AROUND TO ADDING CLEAR! CLEAR IS SO DAMN PRECIOUS I COULD SCREAM. I ACTUALLY SQUEALED ABOUT HIS CUTENESS SEVERAL TIMES WHILE WRITING TODAY'S CHAPTER. IT'S ALMOST KIND OF SAD. I'll stop yelling now…But I'm so excited. Like beyond excited. It's about to be a very bumpy roller coaster. Keep your hands, feet, and personal belongings inside the vehicle at all times and I'll see you next chapter. xx**


	18. His Name is Famous

Noiz and I had to kick Clear to the curb and we headed for Ruff Rabbit territory. We had members missing. The main question is who and why…What would someone want with members of Ruff Rabbit? It's not like we did anything wrong or really anything at all. And everything was calm and collected until I announced my return. Was I the one they wanted…?

"Bolt," Noiz put his hand on the youngest member of the team, "What's going on?"

"We had two members go missing," Bolt gave us the rundown, "But one of our guys just came back, so that's good news!"

"Where is he?"

"He's on the stairs," he pointed, "He's not much for conversation though. He's gone completely mute."

"Hey," Noiz walked over to our catatonic teammate, "What happened?"

Silence.

"Hey!" he got a little more aggressive and backhanded the guy across his face, "I was talking to you! What happened?"

"Noiz!" I pulled him away, "That's not the way to go about this. Can't you see the guy's traumatized? Something happened and beating it out of him isn't the way to go."

Noiz let out a heavy sigh, "Alright, Angel. What do you propose we do?"

"Let me handle this," I kissed my boyfriend's cheek and got down next to our guy, "Hi…"

More silence.

"Are you ok?" I worried. The guy still didn't say anything. Whatever happened, it must have been bad, "Bolt, when did you say he came back?"

"Just a little while ago," Bolt reported, "He kind of wandered back in. It's like he's stoned or something."

"Hold on," a lightbulb turned on in Noiz's head, "Angel, get his head back."

"Ok," I tilted our guy's head back, revealing a pink heart with wings on his throat. It looked like a team's tag art, but I had never seen it before. Rhyme or Rib. Weird.

"Just what I suspected," Noiz turned completely pale, "I knew things were too quiet."

"Noiz…?"

"I'll be right back," he started walking off.

"Noiz!" I ran after him, grabbing his wrist, "Noiz, what's going on? And actually tell me this time. Don't give me any of this runaround you've been giving me."

"I had seen this before," Noiz began, "Members of Dry Juice would go missing for days. When they'd come back, they'd be like zombies with a new tattoo on their neck."

"What happened...?" I listened intently.

"They didn't just go missing," Noiz went on, his hands shaking, "They were kidnapped by Morphine. They're not just a myth anymore. By the looks of things, they're back. Those little cockroaches don't want to die, do they?"

Of course it was Morphine. What else would've gotten Noiz so scared that we'd have to leave the country for a couple weeks? I've never seen him so shaken before, "What do we do?"

"Angel," Noiz took my hand, "I know Morphine's going to come for me. More than likely, they'll come for you, too. As much as it's going to pain me to do this, we need help. And I'll have to send you by yourself."

"Why?" I worried, "Why can't you come with me?"

"Because they won't help if they know I'm involved. They're that petty," he held me close, "I don't want you hurt. Just trust me, ok?"

I hated seeing him like this. I hated that Morphine had something to do with it. But he knows what they're like. I didn't want him to have to worry about me. Especially if he has to leave again, "What do you need me to do?"

Noiz took my Coil and started typing an address in, "I want you to go here at noon tomorrow. Look as plain as possible."

"Ok," I didn't really understand what that was supposed to mean, but I wasn't going to question it. Anything to get him to settle down about me, I was going to do it.

As per his request, I got up the next morning and dug around in the nightstand for a pad of sticky notes. I didn't have the heart to wake the little angel up. Besides, he could use all the sleep he could get right now. I wrote him a note and stuck it on his forehead.

Noiz,

Following your directions.

Not sure when I'll be back.

I shouldn't be too long. If

you leave the house, please

be careful.

I love you.

Angel xx

I grabbed Agatha and started on my journey to wherever Noiz wanted me to go today. At the end of the route, a large group of women were crowded around someone in the middle of the road. In the dead center of this mob stood a man in a bright red kimono with a sword on his back. That kimono looked really familiar. Like the one Noiz had on when he was at my apartment at midnight...

Hold on...

Wait a second...

 _They wouldn't help if they know I'm involved..._

Noiz's words rang in my head. I understood why he couldn't come with me now. And why that kimono looked so familiar. That was Koujaku? I had never seen him before. The girls at work swooned over him a million times before and I could kind of understand where they were coming from. Noiz wanted me to seek his help.

I kind of fought my way through the crowd. These women were vicious when it came to this guy. I had heard stories of a woman walking away from this with a broken nose before. It made me nervous to be here without Noiz. That probably would've got me to the front of the line, too.

"You!" Koujaku pointed. All the others held their breath, hoping he was talking about them, hoping that today was the day Senpai noticed. However, the lucky girl was me, "I've never see you here before. What's your name?"

"Angel," I blushed. This guy definitely had a presence. Those rumors were true.

"How fitting," Koujaku kissed the back of my hand, "For someone as lovely as you, no other name would do. Could I offer my services to you today?"

Koujaku had the whole cocky thing going on. No wonder he and Noiz didn't get along. They're almost cut from the same cloth. Only as much as I love Noiz dearly, Koujaku was a little more charming than Noiz, "I don't know..."

"Please," he begged me, picking up a lock of my hair, "It'd be my pleasure. You're such a natural beauty. Let me help you make it shine bright like it should. Don't rob the world of that."

Wow. Eloquent. I could see why the girls at work gushed over him. This was the game plan for today anyway, "Ok. I guess I can't say no to that."

"Wonderful," he beamed, "I'm sorry, everyone. I'm not taking any more customers today. This is going to take a while."

The groans of disappointment swept through the crowd. And for some odd reason, I got a sick, twisted sense of joy from it. I knew that when one wanted Koujaku, he had to choose them. And he picked me. Koujaku led me up the stairs of an apartment building that was only a block or two away from my own. This must have been Koujaku's place.

"Let's see..." he looked me over, "What to do with you..."

"Easy, sweetheart," I slowed him down. Since he and I met, it's felt like Koujaku's been trying to charm my pants off, "I have a boyfriend."

"So do I," he smirked, "I'm sure yours is a sweetheart, but he's nothing like mine."

I wanted to lay into him for what he's done with my boyfriend. Then again, Noiz wasn't my boyfriend at the time. Still. It was the principle. Koujaku continued to study me closely, assessing me to the best of his ability. I've never felt less like a person and more like a lab specimen more in my life.

"Could I make a suggestion?" I asked.

"This isn't a collaborative piece," he shot me down, "I work alone."

"That's all well and good," I tried not to be offended by his arrogance, "But I need to be unrecognizable when all is said and done."

"Why?" Koujaku asked, "Ex being too clingy?"

"Um..." I hesitated, "Not exactly. Compared to what's actually happening, my ex would appear as a welcomed friend."

"Are you ok?" he got nervous, "Can your boyfriend protect you? Can you protect yourself?"

"Some trouble in the Rhyme community," I brushed him off, "I'll be fine. And I've never seen my boyfriend fight. I don't know if he can."

"Probably not if he's involved with Rhyme," Koujaku grumbled, "My boyfriend used to play Rhyme. I'm so glad he got out of it."

All of a sudden, it clicked, "You're Rib, aren't you?"

"Yeah," he nodded, "I guess I'm a little biased. Tell me, Angel. What's a beautiful girl like you doing playing Rhyme?"

"It's actually a lot of fun," I told, "I got into it when my ex-boyfriend and I would get into fights and I wanted to beat someone's ass relentlessly. I caught the bug and I ended up becoming one of the best to ever play the game. I recently came out of retirement and that put me on some radars. Some that I didn't necessarily want to find myself on."

"And that's why we found each other," Koujaku drew first blood, taking an initial three inches off the bottom, putting it to the middle of my back, "You said your boyfriend plays, too?"

"That's right," I confirmed, "He's a team leader."

"Ruff Rabbit, I'm guessing," Koujaku assumed, "Your tattoo kind of gave it away. It looks like their tag art."

"This was my own design," I explained, "But yes. I'm Ruff Rabbit."

"Good to see Noiz is back on the horse," he applauded, "Must admit the bean sprout's got taste. Didn't expect his next lover to be a woman, though."

"Koujaku," a voice chimed from the front door, "Are you home?"

"With a client!" Koujaku yelled, "You can come back, though. Just don't be a distraction."

"I'll try," a familiar blue haired boy came into Koujaku's studio, shocked to see me, "Oh...hello."

"Aoba, this is Angel," Koujaku introduced us, "Angel, this is my boyfriend, Aoba."

"We know each other," I could feel the heat in my face.

"So, you've met?" he assumed.

"A couple of times," I said nervously.

"This must be awkward," Koujaku figured, making it worse, "The ex and the girlfriend meeting like this."

"We met while I was cleaning out the apartment," Aoba told. I could see it all over his face. It killed him to leave Noiz. Worst of all...? I think he still loved him.

"Speaking of," I changed the subject, "Where's Ren?"

"Right here," Aoba opened his bag to show a dark ball of fur inside.

"Hey, Agatha," I tapped on her forehead, "Wake up, sweetheart."

"What do you want, Angel?" my tiny panda groaned.

"I wanted to introduce you to someone," I lightly swatted her.

"Aoba," Ren poked his head out, "Did you need something?"

"No," Aoba shook his head, "The girl from the shop asked about you."

"Which girl from the shop?"

"Hey, cutie pie," I smiled as Ren's little neck snapped toward me.

"Angel!" he climbed out of Aoba's bag and into my lap.

"Ren," Koujaku awed, "I've never seen you so affectionate. Not even toward Aoba."

"I call him cute," I scratched at his belly, "Of course he's going to love me."

"Hey!" someone got defensive, "You already have an Allmate. You don't need to adopt another one."

"I don't plan on it," I took Agatha off my shoulder, "Aggie, this is Ren. Ren, this is my Allmate, Agatha. I told you about her."

"Pleasure," Ren bowed to her.

"Angel..." Agatha caught her breath, "I think I'm in love."

"Great," I teased, "Just what I want. A lovesick Allmate. Really, Agatha? You just met him and you're in love?"

"It's his voice," she sighed, then snapped back to her usual self, "Not that it's that great. Just kind of dreamy."

"Noiz really did play with your affection settings, didn't he?" I gave her a little nudge.

"Ren's already got a girlfriend," Aoba joked, "Trust me. You don't want to tangle with her."

"Aoba!" Ren growled at him.

"I could probably take her," Agatha boasted, "What kind of Allmate is she?"

"Yorkie," Aoba pressed on.

"Aoba!"

"Oh yeah," she nodded, "I could swallow a yorkie model whole."

As I listened to these two squabble like an old married couple, I watched another few inches fall to the floor. Goodbye, Angel's long hair. You will be missed. I mean, ordinarily, I'd be pretty pissed, but I knew Koujaku was a genius and I had to be incognito for a while. At least until this business with Morphine blew over.

"Alright, Angel," Koujaku shook what was left of my hair out with the little bit of bounce he had put in it, "Is this unrecognizable enough for you?"

"It is kind of adorable," I started to come around, "Do you think we could go the extra mile?"

"You want color, too?" he offered.

"Yes, please," I beamed.

"That's what I like to hear!"

"Well, I have deliveries to make," Aoba gave his boyfriend a quick kiss, "I'll be home later, ok?"

"Ok," Koujaku waved him off, watching him leave like a horny schoolgirl. I couldn't really blame him. Aoba had an ass I wanted to play bongo drums on, but still. A little professionalism wouldn't kill him.

While the light pink color Koujaku had picked out for me was setting, he and I had some time to kill. And I had a question burning in the back of my mind since we met, "Koujaku, can I ask you something?"

"Sure," he sat next to me, "What is it?"

"Why me?" I wondered, "Out of the entire crowd, you picked me. Why?"

"You had potential," Koujaku explained, "You're adorable, Angel. And I think when you're all said and done here, you'll be even more adorable. Mostly because of my skill, but you're really cute. I have a very firm belief that women are a treasure of this world and you had the raw material to shine brighter than all the others. All the others I had seen before. They've been obnoxious repeats that show up a couple times a week whenever I set up shop, practically throwing themselves at my feet, hoping to God I picked them. You, on the other hand, were patient. In all my years of doing this, I had never seen that before. That's how I knew you were the one."

"You know," I blushed, "If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were trying to charm my panties off right here and now."

"Not at all," he assured, "And cheat on Aoba like that? No. Noiz is a very lucky guy. And you an even luckier girl. Don't get me wrong. The little brat can be pretty insufferable at times, but when he came back after being gone for a month before he and Aoba started dating, it seemed like he had mellowed out a lot. I could be in his presence and not want to punch him."

"Hey," I stopped him, "Love him or hate him, Noiz is still my boyfriend..."

"Sorry," Koujaku apologized, "But I promise you, Angel. I'm not trying to charm your panties off, as you so eloquently put it. I don't make it a habit to sleep with many women anymore."

"Damn," I giggled, "I should've gotten in here while I still had the chance."

"No," he laughed with me, "Aoba and I haven't been together long. Maybe a few weeks. But we were pretty meant to be. Ever since we were kids. I was kind of surprised when he told me about Noiz, but when they broke up, I had seen Noiz a week later. I don't remember much from that night. I was pretty trashed. Wish I did. But when I woke up the next morning, Noiz was gone."

Yeah. That's because he'd be waking up in my bed with his arms around my waist and his head on my belly, using me as a pillow. It was kind of adorable and it got me to take a day off from work, but I still wanted to dropkick Koujaku in the junk for that. Then again, he knew he'd be helping Noiz and me out and still kept going. I guess I had to give him brownie points for that.

I went into this thinking I'd still harbor a slight loathing for Koujaku deep in my heart, but the more we talked and the more we got to know each other, he wasn't half bad. Not even a quarter as bad as what Noiz made him out to be. I still had my guard up, but I could see us becoming friends. And maybe even Aoba, too. I'm guessing it was because he had his boyfriend around, but something seemed different about him.

As soon as I had finished with Koujaku, I looked like something out of a magical girl anime (maybe like the one I was currently trying to write in manga form). My hair that started out long, straight, and dark blonde was now short, curled, and light pink. Something I never thought I'd say. But I looked absolutely precious. I feel like I've cosplayed this before. I couldn't be a Ruff Rabbit bunny girl now. I was too pink. But I'm sure I'd be able to make something work.

"Thank you, Koujaku," I fell into his arms. His very big, very warm arms...

"You're welcome," he kissed the top of my head, "Please. Keep in touch. You're welcome here any time. You ever need my services again, let me know. Noiz has my number."

"I will," I nuzzled into him. As much as I loved Noiz, Koujaku was succeeding at the whole charming his way into my panties thing. I could finally understand why everyone swooned over him.

"And be careful, ok?" Koujaku begged, "I wouldn't want anything to happen."

"You, too," I worried, "The people after us aren't something to mess around with."

"I will."

And just like that, I left Koujaku behind and headed for the shop. I needed to pick up a few things. And I should probably explain why I didn't show up for my shift. But something tells me that Noiz called in for me again. He did say he wanted me to find Koujaku today instead. Tomorrow. There's always tomorrow.

I got to the front counter with a gallon of milk, a pint of ice cream, and a bottle of oil for the whiny, lovesick panda in my pocket and got in the line of a familiar face. As much as I hated working at this place, it occasionally had its perks. And this girl was definitely one of them. Despite her...quirks.

"Hi, Kyu," I smiled sweetly.

"Angel...?" she gasped, looking a little closer at me, "That is you! What happened to you? You look so different!"

"You're not going to believe me," I tried to keep things lighthearted. I knew what me looking the way I do was for. And the last thing I wanted was to get Kyu involved with Morphine.

"Come on," Kyu nudged me, "Tell me. What happened? All of a sudden, I find out you're not going to be here for two weeks. Then! When I get all excited because you're supposed to come in for your shift today, the boss says you called in? You could tell me you were abducted by aliens at this point and I'd probably believe you."

"That'd probably be more plausible," I joked, "But you have to promise me you'll keep a level head, ok?"

"Were you really abducted by aliens?" Kyu asked quietly, "I was joking about that."

"No," I rolled my eyes, "I went to see someone today. Someone very high profile around these parts. Especially with the ladies."

"I thought you had a boyfriend."

"I do," I went on, "He's the one that told me to see this guy in the first place. I went to see Koujaku today."

"YOU SAW KOUJAKU?!" So much for Kyu keeping a level head. I don't know why I expected anything else.

"Yes!" I snapped, "Keep it down, Kyu!"

"Sorry," she went back to whispering, "But you got in to see Koujaku? You're so lucky, Angel! No one picks him. He picks you. It's huge honor! How did that happen? I've been waiting for months to see him! You can never find him, though. It's not like he has a permanent spot. What's he like?"

"He's exactly what you'd expect," I described, "He's attractive, charming, a little bit of a bonehead. He told me I can go back to him any time I want."

"You made friends with Koujaku?" I thought Kyu was going to have a heart attack, "I'm not worthy to be in your presence right now."

"Yes, you are," I promised, "He's just another person, Kyu. He puts his pants on one leg at a time just like anybody else."

"Are you going to tell me there's no Santa Claus either?" she pouted.

"No," I giggled, "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get back to my boyfriend. God only knows what kind of shenanigans he's gotten into since I've been gone. Koujaku and I have been at this since early this afternoon."

"Since you have some pull with him now," Kyu exploited our friendship, "You think you could set me up with Koujaku?"

"Sorry, Kyu," I grabbed my bags off the counter, "You'll have to wait like everyone else."

"Dammit!"

I waved behind me and started heading home. I didn't really see it as much of an honor. I mean, yeah, this guy was good. He did a hell of a job on me, but by the way Kyu was talking, Koujaku was revered like a god. I guess I didn't see it. I was kind of particular, though.

When I got home to Noiz's place, I was exhausted. My feet were killing me, but my ass hurt all the same. As much as I wanted to sit down and relax for a while, I couldn't do that. I popped a couple of aspirin in my mouth and swallowed them, fully prepared to spend some quality time on the couch with my drawing tablet. But when I turned around, someone had already claimed it.

Noiz was sleeping soundly, curled up in a little ball. Rather adorable, really. I didn't have the heart to wake him up. This poor baby needed all the sleep he could get. Instead, I gently kissed his forehead and wrapped his arm around me, joining him in his nap.

 **A/N: Golly, this update turned out to be longer than I thought. I've been wanting to fully introduce Koujaku for a while now. He's been a favorite character for as long as I can remember. I know I said this a million times in the chapter, but he's SO DAMN CHARMING! Oh my God! Koujaku has such a silver tongue and I'm one of those people that get very swoony when someone is so eloquent. And Koujaku could probably have me in any way, shape, or form he wanted me. I'm going to stop now…Because we have Morphine to deal with! I've been sitting on Morphine for sooooooo long now. Morphine is to "His Angel Bunny" what Karuizawa was for "Kiss, Kiss", the Ouran fic, for those who don't follow (which has a MASSIVE update coming tomorrow!). And I can't wait to see how exactly Morphine unfolds…**

 **Now! Milestones! "About Time" (If you don't know about "About Time" yet, what are you doing with your life? No…Just jokes, guys. "About Time" is a Dramatical Murder one-shot I did back in June. It's pretty adorable. It's very fluffy.) just reached its first hundred views! Yay! I had to say something about that. It's probably one of my more favorite things I've ever written. If you'd care to add to that view count, I'd really appreciate it. Anyway, see you next chapter! xx**


	19. His Name is Zane

I loved those naps that are intended to be naps, but they end up lasting longer than they should and we end up sleeping on the couch. Way to go, Angel. Gold star for you. And I have to go back to work today. I'll be all sore and stiff and cranky. At least I got the jetlag out of my system. Silver linings, I guess.

That is until Noiz freaks and pushes me off the couch, "Who are you and what are you doing in my apartment?"

"Ouch," I groaned, "Noiz, what the hell? It's me, you idiot."

Finally, he came to his senses and pulled me back down to him, "Sorry, Angel. I forgot about you going to see Koujaku today."

"Yesterday, baby," I corrected, cuddling into his chest, "You slept for most of it."

"I tried staying up," Noiz swore, "I really did. Jetlag, one. Noiz, zero."

"At least you're caught up," I gave him a little kiss and pulled him off the couch, "So, what do you think? Pretty unrecognizable, huh?"

"That was the plan," he spun me around, "Koujaku did a nice job."

"I can finally understand the hype," I rubbed my eyes. They felt like they were on fire. That's what I get for sleeping in my contacts. New pair. Definitely need a new pair.

"Hey, Angel," Noiz stopped me, "When you were with Koujaku yesterday...He wasn't...weird with you or anything, was he?"

"You mean, did he try making a move on me?" I figured, "No. Aoba came home and put a damper on that."

"So, that's who he started seeing," a slightly pained look washed over Noiz's face, "And he's already moved in with him..."

"And?" I ran my hands up his chest, trying to diffuse the situation, "I moved in with you."

"Unofficially moved in with me," he clarified, "With Morphine on our heels, this is the safest place for you right now."

"Or I could go back to the US," I suggested, half joking.

"No," Noiz shot me down, "We were just there. If you were to go back now, it'd raise too much suspicion and I don't want Mink tearing my head off. Although..."

"What?"

"Nothing," he shook it off, "Just thought of a possible contingency plan if things get any worse. Go ahead. Go to work. I'll see you when you come home."

"Ok," I reached for my shoe with my foot and unexpectedly, Noiz held me tight against his chest.

"I love you," his voice melted in my ear.

"I love you, too," I gave him a kiss goodbye and headed to the shop.

This whole Morphine thing really does have him scared. Before we even met, I had heard some things about Ruff Rabbit either eavesdropping on the streets or through the forums and how their leader was pretty ruthless. I never thought I'd even come close enough to see it for myself, let alone see him in the completely opposite light. It crushed me to my very core to see him like this.

"Angel," Kyu called out to me, snapping me out of my trance.

"What?"

"Are you ok?" she worried, "You've been spacey all day."

"I'm fine," I brushed her off, "Just a lot on my mind."

"Do you need to talk?" Kyu offered, "Do you need a friend?"

Uh-oh. At this point, I don't know who I can trust anymore. I know I've known Kyu practically since I moved to Midorijima, but I don't know if she has any Morphine ties or knows anyone who does. And as much as I love her to death, I don't want to get her involved. Quick, Angel. Think on your feet. Keep Kyu from digging any deeper, "I recently moved."

"Congratulations!" she praised, "So, we're not just down the road from each other anymore?"

"Nope."

"Where'd you move to?" Kyu asked, her big green eyes nearly shooting off glitter.

"The East District."

"Look at you!" she squeaked, "When did this happen? And how? We make the same."

"Well," I bit my tongue, fully prepared for the eruption that was about to happen, "I moved in with my boyfriend."

"Good for you, honey!" Kyu gave me the biggest high five I've ever had in my life, "What does he do for a living? Because I need to be making that kind of money."

"He's his brother's personal assistant," I went back to stocking the shelves.

"What else?" she pried, "You don't get East District money just from being a personal assistant. There's no way. He's got to be doing something on the side, too."

I couldn't tell her about Noiz being an information broker, despite that being his main source of income. His methods of how he obtains said information aren't exactly legal. I can't tell Kyu he's a master hacker for a living. Besides, that'd be kind of a dead giveaway of who my boyfriend is. I'm guessing there aren't many of them in Midorijima. And if Noiz has tangled with Morphine before, I'm sure they know about his abilities, "His family's loaded."

"Good for you, Angel!" The aforementioned high five had nothing on this one. This one had after sting, "That's how you're living in the East District. If your boyfriend's got that kind of money, why don't you two move into the North District?"

Because the North District is where Platinum Jail used to be. The fact that Noiz is still living in Midorijima is a big enough stretch. We don't need to rub salt in that wound, "I don't know. Location's nicer."

"You better marry him, Angel," Kyu demanded, "Before some other girl comes along and steals him from you."

I was almost one hundred percent positive that there was only one girl for Noiz and that girl was me. I kept myself busy, keeping an eye out for anyone suspicious and anyone with the same neck tattoo our guy had. Fortunately, no one matched the description. And I could finally go home and get some work done. Possibly curled into Noiz's hip while I worked. The tale of TenshiUsagiChan needed some work.

"Honey," I kicked my shoes off at the door, "I'm home."

"Hey," he greeted me.

"How are things?" I wrapped my arms around him from behind, nuzzling into his neck.

"Quiet," Noiz reported, "I don't like quiet. Quiet makes me nervous."

"Hey," I kissed his cheek, "We'll be ok. I promise. I'm going to get started on dinner, ok?"

"Ok."

I dug through the cabinets, looking around for something to make tonight. I hadn't done the grocery shopping in a while and with Noiz and me being out of town, I haven't seen much of a reason to. I knew I could just call and order something, but I hadn't actually cooked in so long. I needed to flex the muscle again.

 _Pound, pound, pound._

"Noiz," I yelled from the kitchen, "Can you get that?"

"Fine," I knew how much he hated getting the door. That's what he had me for. But I was busy cooking, "Can I help you?"

"You said you'd keep him safe!" a woman screamed in hysterics, "You said he wouldn't get into any trouble! You said he'd be fine! Is he here?"

"Who?" Noiz freaked.

"Is everything ok?" I walked out to intervene. I was afraid if I didn't, there would be bloodshed. A woman stood in the doorway with heavy black streaks streaming down her face.

"My son is missing," she sobbed, "And it's all his fault!"

"I didn't take him!" Noiz jumped on the defensive, "I don't even know who you're talking about!"

"Hi," I took her off his hands, "Can you tell me what's going on?"

"My son Zane hasn't come home," the woman explained a little more calmly. I sat her down on the couch, "I thought he was at a friend's house, but I haven't seen him or heard from him in three days. He said if he joined Ruff Rabbit, he'd be ok because Noiz was the second best there ever was."

"Second best?" I wondered.

"Yes," she nodded, "I remember when he first got into Rhyme. He found out about this TenshiUsagiChan. He said they were the best to ever play the game."

"That's what I hear," I blushed, "That'd be me."

"You're her?" she gasped, "Zane told me when he met you. He was so happy…Please. You have to find him. He's only fifteen. He's my baby…"

"I'm sorry," I said, trying to keep her from crying again, "I don't remember meeting your son. There isn't anyone named Zane on our…"

"Angel," Noiz cut me off, "That's Bolt's first name…"

All of a sudden, I felt really sick. Not Bolt. They could've taken anyone else on the team. Why did they have to take Bolt? He's just a kid, "No…"

"Yeah," Noiz sat next to Bolt's mother and took her hands, "I promise you. I will help you find your son. And I will bring him back."

"Thank you, Noiz," she threw her arms around him, "Thank you so much."

"We'll keep in touch," he peeled her off and sent her on her way.

"Noiz," my voice broke, "They got Bolt, don't they?"

"Looks like it," he winced, "I think it's time we set the contingency plan in motion…"

 **A/N: They got my little Beanie Baby…I didn't want them to take Bolt. But we had to pull on the heartstrings a little bit. I don't love making people hurt like this, but I do love a good cliffhanger. And I'm sorry this chapter's up so late. I've been out and about all day and I just got home. But! You guys…I have good news. Maybe this will take the sting out of the whole Bolt going missing thing. I, uh…I reached 100,000 collective views today…And I'm so happy. I started posting a year ago and I'm already up to that many? I hope I can get to 200,000 by this time next year. Thank you to the ones that contributed to that and I'll see you next chapter. xx**


	20. His Name is Theo

**A/N: Hi, guys! Quick heads up. I know normally when I say that, it means there's a smut chapter coming up. No. No smut chapter this week. And none next week either. But that's because I'm going to be away from home next week to see the family. I'll try to post, but I'm not guaranteeing anything. Just don't get mad at me and don't leave me if I don't have an update next week. I do have a little idea for the following week, but I'm not going to say anything on the off chance it won't happen. No sense in getting your hopes up. That's just mean. Now, I'm going to stop talking. You're going to start reading. Sound good?**

I couldn't believe it. Those dicks at Morphine took sweet, little Bolt. My little sweetheart. My number one fan after Noiz. My little baby, "Noiz, what would Morphine want with Bolt?"

"Bolt was pegged to be my successor," Noiz explained, "The others were just to send a message, but taking Bolt? Bolt is personal. I've come to think of him like my own littler brother. Not quite on the same level as my actual little brother, but he comes pretty damn close. Which means, if we're going about this logically, you're probably the next one on Morphine's hit list."

"We have to find Bolt," my voice quivered, "We just have to."

"I'll find Bolt," Noiz whipped out his Coil, "You're getting out of Midorijima."

My stomach dropped, "Noiz, no."

"Whether you like it or not," he put his foot down, "Yes. I want you somewhere safe out of Morphine's reach. I'm sure they have an eye on my bank accounts...I need to make a phone call."

"What do we do?"

"Hello?" the other end of Noiz's Coil chimed.

"Theo, I need a huge favor," he cut right to the choice.

"Sure," he obliged, "What do you need?"

"I need you to buy a plane ticket," Noiz demanded, "from Midorijima to Berlin. One way."

"I can do that," he agreed, "What do you need a plane ticket for? Weren't you just here?"

"I'm being watched," Noiz told, "I'm going to send you a very special package that I need you to keep safe. I want you to guard it with your life."

"Ok!" he chirped, "Send me all the information and I'll get that ticket."

"On it now." As the line went dead, Noiz threw my Coil to me, "You should be getting a confirmation email soon."

Ping!

Sure enough, there it was. There was my plane ticket from Midorijima to Berlin. I was about to go into hiding in Germany and I couldn't even take my boyfriend with me. I put my hand to his shoulder, "Noiz..."

"I have a penthouse in Berlin," he went back to his monitors, "Theo knows where it is. Your flight should be leaving soon."

"But Noiz..."

"Go, Angel..." he snapped at me, "As soon as you land, get a burner and call me."

"Ok," I gave Noiz a kiss, "I love you..."

"I love you, too."

It killed me to see Noiz distancing himself from me. I knew why he was doing it, but that didn't mean I had to like it. I had to like it...No, I didn't. I pushed through the door, "Dammit, Noiz! I'm not leaving without you!"

"Don't be a martyr!" he did all but shove me out the door, "You have to go and you have to go now. It's not safe for you here anymore, Angel. I'm not going to fight you on this!"

In my state of pure shock that Noiz would've ever talked to me that way, I got a cab and headed for the airport. My entire flight to Berlin was nothing but soft sobbing and a strong craving for vodka. I could understand that Noiz wanting me safe, but tying himself to the railroad tracks in order to do it wasn't the way to go about it. I wanted him safe, too. We don't even know when Morphine would come for me or if they even would. Or even if I was next on the list.

As I landed in Germany, I searched the airport for anyone sent to pick me up. I didn't even know what whoever Noiz sent would even look like. This was hopeless. I was stuck at an airport in a foreign country that I've never been in before where I don't even know the language. Fantastic. Just what I wanted. The leaders of Morphine were going to get a strongly worded email and my foot in their nuts for this.

"Excuse me," some kid in a hoody tapped me on the shoulder, making it a point to keep his face covered, "Where did you just fly in from?"

"Japan," I gave him a look, "Why?"

"Are you Angel, by any chance?" he asked.

"Um..." I got really nervous, "Yeah..."

"No need to worry, Fräulein," he assured, "Wi...Noiz sent me."

"Who are you?" I started to settle a little at the mention of the boy I loved and had to leave behind.

"I'm going to take you to his penthouse," this kid went on. He took my hand and my bag and for some reason, I felt like I could trust him. In all honesty, he almost gave me the same feeling of security Noiz did.

"Hold on," I had to be sure, "You're not Morphine, are you?"

"No," he brought me to a very comfortable looking limo, "Is that what this is all about? He just can't stay out of trouble, can he?"

"You're telling me," I sighed out, "So, who are you? I don't think you told me."

"I'm sorry," he dropped his hood and shook his hair out of his face, "Hi. I'm Theo."

"You're Theo?" I gasped, looking him over. This kid looked a lot like Noiz if Noiz didn't have all the piercings and looked like a damn Disney prince!

"I sure am!" he sang out.

"You're Noiz's little brother?"

"Last time I checked," Theo confirmed, "Honestly, I'm kind of surprised he has a girlfriend. Definitely picked a cute one. That's for sure."

Immediately, I turned bright red, "Thank you, I guess?"

"Do you know what happened with him and Aoba?" Theo wondered, "Wil wouldn't tell me."

"Aoba said he couldn't handle him anymore," I'm sure Noiz wouldn't mind if I told his brother, "So I handled him instead."

"How'd you two meet?" our car took off.

"I was working," I told, "He had come in for pizza and ice cream to eat his feelings, so I offered him his weight in rice instead. And we've pretty much been together ever since. Minus a little hiccup that resulted in him coming over super late at night, but that ended up being a high point in our relationship."

"He wouldn't shut up about you when he was here," Theo admitted, "He kind of likes you."

"I thought so," I smiled a little.

"I don't think you realize the extent of it, though," he went on, "He really likes you. While he was here and it was just the two of us, he told me all about you. He said you were a wasted talent. You were otaku to your core. You could probably kick his ass if you wanted to, but you opt against it any time he brings it up."

"Wow," I got caught off guard, "I guess Noiz has told you all about me."

"And if you weren't with my brother," Theo teased, "I'd be making passes at you."

"I got half a mind to take you back with me," I took his hand, "You're adorable."

"Danke," he blushed, "But I belong here. I have too much to take care of around here to ever consider uprooting to Japan. But…Do you think you could do me a favor?"

"Sure," I nodded, "What is it?"

"Whatever kind of trouble Wil is into now," Theo shook a little, "Take care of him. Make sure he's ok. He's the only brother I got and he worries the hell out of me. He says I worry too much about him, but honestly, I don't think I worry enough. I love him, though, and it's always been this way. Ever since we were young. They say it's supposed to be the big brother looking after the little brother, but I've always been the one to look after him. I knew Wil was different and our parents told me that I should be extra careful when I go near him, but I didn't care. Deep down, he was still my brother. And now that he can actually feel things, we've never been closer."

My heart started racing and I pulled this sweet little Disney prince to my side, "Seriously, Theo. Can I keep you?"

"I'm pretty sure someone would have a problem with that," he chuckled, surrendering to my embrace.

"Oh, I know he would," I giggled a bit, "I love him, too. You're rapidly becoming a close third, but he comes first."

"Third?"

I opened up my bag and poked the close second, "This one comes first."

"Is it all finally over?" Agatha woke up, "Have we landed?"

"Long time ago," I said.

She popped her little head out and did a quick glance around, "Where are we?"

"This is Berlin," Theo pointed out as we pulled up to a big, silver looking building, "And this is my brother's building."

"Brother?" Agatha rubbed her eyes, "Who the hell are you?"

"Aggie, play nice," I scolded, "You'll have to forgive her. She's kind of mistrusting of everyone. Especially now."

"I'm Theo," he introduced himself, "I've never met a talking panda before."

"She's my Allmate," I told, "She's got a really feisty personality, so if she says anything too harsh, just ignore it."

"Hey!"

"You know I still love you, though," I snuggled her.

"So, in the grand scheme of things," Agatha regained her balance, "Who are you?"

"I'm Wil's little brother," Theo explained.

"Why do you keep calling him Wil?" I wondered.

"Seriously?" he giggled, helping me out of our limo, "He's your boyfriend and you don't know his real name is Wilhelm?"

"Hey!" I shoved him a little, "I've always called him Noiz. He's never told me anything else. Cut me some slack."

"Alright," Theo let it go and the three of us took the elevator up to Noiz's penthouse. Yeah. He could kick some of that my way a little. He wasn't hurting. This place was huge! He had two entire floors and they just sat here, doing nothing until Noiz came around when Theo called. Maybe if this thing with Morphine doesn't situate itself, he and I could move here. I'm guessing this is the contingency plan.

"And you're sure this is Noiz's penthouse?" I gasped.

"Everything's his," he assured, moving over to one of the monitors on the wall, "Come here."

"What's all this for?" I looked the screens over.

"Just doing what Wil asked," Theo took a small leather cover and gave it to me, "Congratulations. You now have a new identity."

"Is this all really necessary?" I wondered, feeling a little uncomfortable.

"If you have someone like Morphine after you," he turned very serious very quickly, "It's completely necessary. Now, we need to go over your backstory."

"Ok," I was still having a hard time wrapping my head around everything, but I did my best to follow along.

"Your name is now Mika Heinrich," Theo told, "You're a graphic design major studying abroad in Berlin. You're from upper Maine. According to Wil, your German is less than desirable, so you couldn't pass for German. Although, your facial structure could pass."

"That's probably where my ancestry comes from," I figured, "So, if I were to learn German, I could pass?"

"Yeah," he squeaked, "Now, all you need to do is keep your head

"Theo," I looked my new passport and ID over, "Where did you get these? They're flawless."

"My brother may be a master hacker," a little smirk made its way onto Theo's face, very reminiscent of his brother, "But I'm a master forger. Anything you need from IDs to passports to documentation of any kind. Hell, I managed to do doctor's notes throughout high school and I'd take a train to Italy for the day. But I'm your guy."

"How do you not get caught?" I asked, throwing myself onto the overly plush couch that I think may have swallowed me whole.

"You really don't know Wil that well, do you?" Theo joined me, "I make the document, I tell Wil to keep an eye on things. If, by some chance, I come up anywhere, he wipes the slate clean. No one knows anything ever happened."

"You have quite a gift," I praised, "If you and your brother ever decided to go into business in the criminal underworld together, you'd both be a force to be reckoned with."

"Thank you," he beamed, handing me a key, "Well. Welcome home, Angel. Until I get the word from Wil, this place is all yours. If you need anything, give me a yell."

"I will."

"And here," Theo reached into his pocket and put what looked like a really thin pink watch around my wrist, "This is your new Coil. It does everything your old Coil did, but the design is a lot sleeker and it holds a lot more memory. Call him. Let him know you're ok."

"Sounds like a plan," I gave my boyfriend's brother the biggest hug, "Thank you, Theo."

"You're welcome," he hugged me all the harder, "I'll be back tomorrow to check in, ok?"

"Ok."

Theo kissed the top of my head, "Welcome to Germany, Mika. I really wish it was on better terms."

"Danke," I sighed, "See? I do know some German."

"You'll learn," he assured, getting up from the couch, "Call Wil."

"About to," I pulled up my contacts and the first one on the list was already highlighted.

"Angel?" a familiar voice barked on the other end.

"No," I corrected, "Mika. Hey, baby."

"You're good?" Noiz worried, "Are you all settled in?"

"I'm fine," I settled him, "I'm ok, Noiz. Theo ran me through everything. I'm sitting in your penthouse as we speak."

"Is Theo still there?" he wondered.

"No," I said, "He just left."

"I miss you…"

Those three little words punched the biggest hole in my heart. I hated the note we left on. And our fight scratched in the back of my brain ever since. It felt good to know we were still ok, "I miss you, too. Will you be coming for me any time soon?"

"Not yet," Noiz told, "I haven't heard anything on Bolt or where Morphine's hiding or if they're coming for you. But for now, you should be ok. Go get some sleep. Jetlag's going to set in and I don't want Theo to have to deal with you bitchy and sleep deprived."

"You, too," I put my foot down, "I know damn well you haven't slept and it's six o'clock in the morning in Midorijima right now. I'll go to bed if you will."

"Fine," Noiz agreed, "Call me when you wake up, ok?"

"I will."

"I love you, Angel," I could hear the hurt in his voice.

And I nearly cried, "I love you, too."

Dammit, Morphine. I wanted to go home and I wanted to curl up with my boyfriend. Sleep wasn't going to come easy for me. I knew that much. I went into the bedroom and threw myself onto the massive bed in the middle of the room. I could see why Noiz liked it here. Plush, lavish…I could make myself at home here, but I'm missing one crucial component. I opened the nightstand drawer and found a bottle of sleeping tablets. So, that's how he fought the jetlag. Or it's how he slept when I'm not here…

 **A/N: I've been wanting to introduce my little angel Theo for so long. A few weeks ago, I brought in Clear and that just opened Pandora's box. Theo is such a little cutie pie and I could eat him up. Nothing pisses me off more than when people draw smut about this sweetheart. But things are about to get very interesting for Mika Heinrich. I'm looking forward to see what unfolds while she's in Germany. See you next chapter! xx**


	21. His Name is Creeper

**A/N: If you're reading this, I'm currently on safari and my legs have been chewed off by a lion. I am nothing but waist, up. No…I'm just being silly. If you're reading this, I'm actually elsewhere. I've gone to visit the family. I warned you about this last week. I also said that I wasn't going to update this week. Well…I LIED! Actually, I'm using the weekend to get something done instead of going on Zelda binges like I've been doing (the current selection is the Wind Waker, if you're curious, with some occasional fishing breaks for Twilight Princess. You'd think there'd be fishing in WW, considering it's ALL WATER. You dropped the ball, Nintendo…You dropped the ball…). So, by the time you're reading this, my brain has fried and turned into goo. Enjoy!**

It took me a few days, but I had finally gotten adjusted to Germany's time and fully settled into Noiz's place. This penthouse was definitely something I could get used to. Coming from a girl that lived in a small house growing up and a small apartment in both San Diego and Midorijima, a big, spacious penthouse in Berlin with some immaculate views? Definitely an adjustment.

Although it was big and spacious and I could run around naked if I so choose, it was awfully empty. Not to mention, a girl could only entertain herself so much with a near unlimited amount of video games. What can I say? My boyfriend's a gaming otaku. Not really that surprised. I figured he was probably a gamer the day we met. We can sense each other.

It's probably safe to go out, right? Why not? Around the middle of the afternoon, I decided to go on a little adventure. It's not like Morphine knows I'm here. And I doubt they have any resources here. I'll be fine. I'm not even using my real name. As far as anyone knows, my name is Mika. The more and more I walked around Berlin, the more of a beautiful city it became to me. Hard to believe that Noiz left this so willingly. Granted, I don't understand a single word anyone is saying, but I was starting to like it here.

But…

Sigh…I miss Noiz. As much as I was starting to fall in love with Berlin, I had a piece of my heart back in Midorijima. I couldn't call him now. He's either sleeping or looking for Bolt and I didn't want to take him away from either one. I was going to call Theo and see if he'd come hang out with me, but he's working, too. I even left Agatha behind at Noiz's, so she could update and get some rest. I went into the café coming up on my right and scrolled through my contacts in my Coil.

"Full Bloom Floral," a comforting voice boomed on the other end, "How can I help you?"

"Mink," I let out a heavy, depressed sigh, "I need a hug."

"What's the matter, Angel?" he worried, "What do you need a hug for?"

"I have a certain organization on my tail," I confessed, making sure to keep my voice down, "Noiz sent me to Germany and I'm all by myself here."

"Hold on," Mink stopped me, "There's an organization after you? What organization would be after you?"

"Morphine…" I whispered.

"Angel," Mink gasped, "What have you gotten yourself into?"

"Nothing!" I assured, "I didn't do anything!"

"You must have done something to get on Morphine's radar," he figured, "What's been happening in the past three months?"

"Well," I thought it over, "I started dating Noiz. I got hit in a drive-by by someone from Ruff Rabbit, only to find out it was Yuki and that got him kicked off the team. One of our guys got hit in a drive-by and the kid that did it was told to by some guy. And…I came out of Rhyme retirement…Officially."

"You're a good girl, Angel," Mink scolded, "What did I tell you about playing Rhyme? It's nothing but trouble."

"I missed the camaraderie," I told, "I missed having that family relationship. I didn't want to go back home to get it, so the Ruff Rabbit boys filled the void. You can't tell me that if you had the opportunity to reunite Scratch, you would turn it down. You have to miss your team a little."

"Not really," he brushed me off, "They were more or less pawns to me. They helped me achieve my endgame. That's it."

"Bad analogy then."

"What would Morphine want with you?" Mink wondered.

"I don't know," I quivered, "I really don't."

"And all because you had to be with Noiz," he growled.

"Noiz had nothing to do with it," I snapped, "I played Rhyme long before I met him."

"But he made you come back," Mink's tirade continued, "And look where that's gotten you."

"I made that decision on my own," he was really starting to piss me off, "Noiz also flew me five thousand miles away from Midorijima to keep me safe, Mink. Could you ease up on him a bit?"

"Are you staying inside?"

"What?"

"Inside," Mink reiterated, "Are you staying inside? Are you keeping away from anything reckless?"

"I'm sitting in a café right now," I could hear Mink's blood boil on the other end, "I got bored."

"Go back to wherever you're staying," he demanded, "Go back. Go now."

"Why?"

"I know how Morphine is," Mink explained, "I want you safe. Now, go."

Hard to argue with Mink's logic. I knew he's dealt with Morphine before. Morphine was involved with Platinum Jail. I wasn't going to fight him, "Ok. On my way now."

"Good," he sighed out, "Keep me posted, Angel."

"I will."

Click.

Although talking to Mink made me that right combination of pissed and better, I still needed a hug. And I would've stabbed a man for one of Mink's hugs right now. No matter what negative, bitchy mood I was in, that was a surefire way of everything being ok. When I was still living in San Diego and I wanted to drive Yuki into a wall, I'd always call Mink. He'd always come over. And he'd always make everything better somehow.

"Hello," a very attractive blonde man sat next to me, "Is this seat taken?"

"No," I shook my head, "You speak English?"

"Yes," he nodded, "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"I'm sorry," I got up, "I need to be going."

"What's the rush?" the man took my hand, "We just met. I came over here, so I could talk to you. You're a very beautiful woman."

"You don't even know my name," I writhed out of his grasp, "I have to go."

"What is it?" he stopped me, "Your name…"

"Mika," my survival instincts kicked in, "Now, if you'll excuse me…"

"Could I walk you home?" he offered.

"Thank you," I shot him down, "But no."

I turned on my heel and left the café behind. What a creeper. No, I'm not going to let you walk me home. I already have Morphine on my ass. I don't need a stalker in Germany, too. I'll have to pass. When I got back to the penthouse, I threw myself on Noiz's unnecessarily big ass bed. I needed to go to sleep. It had gotten late and I was exhausted. I wrapped myself up in the comforter like a burrito and shut my eyes.

Two hours had gone by and I still couldn't fall asleep. I had taken three sleeping tablets at this point and nothing was working. I wasn't sure what had me so awake. If it was my creepy stalker from the café or if it was not having Noiz or if it was the looming darkness of Morphine floating over my head or if it was the fact that I shouldn't be here and I should be back in Midorijima looking for Bolt. But I knew in that moment sleep wasn't going to come easy for me. I grabbed my Coil off the nightstand.

"Hello?" the other end chirped.

"Hi, Theo," I greeted, "It's Mika."

"Hey, Angel," he said, "What's up? What do you need?"

"I need you to do me a favor," I bit my tongue, "Could you come over?"

"Sure," Theo agreed, "I'm on my way. Is everything ok?"

"Just come over," my voice broke a bit.

"Alright," he didn't dig any deeper, "I'll be there soon."

"Thank you."

Click.

Fortunately for me, Theo's building was across the street from Noiz's building and it wouldn't take him long to be at the front door. I turned the electric kettle on and made myself some tea. Maybe that would ease my nerves. It's not like Noiz kept any booze around here, so I couldn't do a shot of whiskey and go to sleep.

"Angel?" Theo let himself in, finding me balled up on the couch with a cup of chamomile in my lap, "What's wrong?"

"Could you…" I was taking a big leap here, "Could you stay with me tonight?"

"Um…" he blushed, "I don't know, Angel…"

"Please?" I begged, "I can't sleep. I've taken three tablets. I've tried forcing myself to sleep. Noiz isn't here. You're the closest thing I have to him. I just need someone to cuddle with. Please, Theo. You're my only hope for sleep tonight."

I could see it in his eyes. Theo was weighing the pros and cons in his head, "Wil won't get mad?"

"I'm sure he'd understand," I assured, "He'd probably be praising you for this. If not, I have my ways of making him understand. It'll be fine."

"Ok," he agreed, "I can do that."

"Thank you, Theo," I finished my tea and the two of us went back to the bedroom, "Really. I do appreciate this."

"You're welcome," he smiled a little, "So, how do you want to do this? Big spoon or little spoon?"

"You're taller than me," I pointed out, "I don't think I could be big spoon without being uncomfortable."

"Little spoon, it is then," Theo crawled in next to me, wrapping his arms around my shoulders, "And you're sure Wil won't kill me for this?"

"It's not like we're having sex," I settled him, "This is purely about sleep."

"Ok," Theo kissed the top of my head, "Good night, Angel."

"Good night."

That's exactly what I needed. I needed someone there to make everything alright. And fortunately, I had Theo for that. Don't get me wrong. I missed the hell out of his brother and I wished he was the one sleeping with me tonight, but Theo made a perfect substitute.

 **A/N: I want to cuddle Theo so hard. So very hard. He's just the cutest little thing. Theo is my favorite thing about Reconnect. Also, I had a thought that's been rolling around in the old noggin. Is there a good Noiz x Mink fic? Just out of curiosity? Because I'd love to be a fly on the wall for that. Noiz is such an insolent little shit and Mink is such a dominant papa bear figure. He'd knock Noiz down a peg or two and I need to see this. I'm sweating…Also, I missed Mink terribly. I had a dirty dream with Mink the other night and I haven't been able to get him out of my mind ever since. In other news, I also watched the first couple episodes of Dramatical Murder for the English dub and...my God, did I criiiiiiiiiinge...No...It's not ok...I like the voice for Ren, I like the voice for Clear, and I like the voice for Akushima. Aside from that...*has Vietnam like flashbacks* See you next chapter! xx**


	22. His Name is Double

**A/N: Hello, everyone. Golly, it's nice to see you in real time again. I hope you guys liked last week's update. It was kind of thrown together. Fingers crossed it didn't suck too bad for you. It can't suck! It had THEO CUDDLES IN IT! Now, if you care at all, I tend to keep the personal stuff out of these things unless it directly affects the story, but I'll share with you my woes. In my trip I took last week (and I still have my legs), I wrote this week's chapter and a little bit of next week's chapter, too, while sitting at a bar with the family because I don't drink often. I definitely don't drink in public. And definitely not in a bar where I know hardly anyone. So, I worked. And I worked hard. Better that than the panic attack I had, but I digress. I wasn't going to post today because I'm still pretty drained from last week, but here we are. Easier to keep up the muscle than to get it back. Now, enjoy the fruits of my social anxiety. I'll see you at the end!**

So, I've taken to crying in my sleep, have I? Thanks, body. I appreciate that. I rolled toward the blaring alarm sounding from the nightstand and noticed Theo's arm was still around me. My Coil? I unplugged it from the wall and answered the call, "Hello?"

"Hey," a rumbly voice spoke on the other end, "I didn't wake you, did I?"

"I'm sure I needed to get up anyway," I wiped my eyes, "Hi, Noiz. How is everything?"

"I got some good news," he reported, "And that good news is currently asleep on the futon in the living room."

"You found Bolt?" my heart stopped as I sat up quickly, nearly hitting Theo with his own hand.

"He's half brain dead with the Morphine tag art on his throat," Noiz went on, "But yeah. I got him."

"Where did you find him?" I caught my breath while Theo stirred next to me.

"He was drooling on himself in some abandoned building in the warehouse district," he told, "Kind of looked like Scratch's old hideout, but I didn't find any trace of Morphine anywhere. Or any evidence that anyone had even been there other than Bolt. Either Bolt wandered in there by himself or Trip and Virus are better at covering their tracks than I thought."

"How would Bolt wander in my himself?" I wondered.

"When you're taken by Morphine," Noiz explained, "I don't know how they do it, but whoever's taken ends up in a sort of trance. Whenever Trip and Virus are done with them, they throw them away like trash. And while that person is coming down, for lack of a better word, it's almost like they did heroin and they're in the middle of drying out. Now, I'm just waiting on him to wake up."

"He'll be alright, though," I worried, "Right...?"

"He's in pretty rough shape," Noiz's voice shook, "A few bumps and bruises. Some scrapes. If he doesn't wake up in the next couple hours, I'm taking him to the hospital. But he'll be ok. Eventually. I hope. I doubt he'll ever be playing Rhyme with us ever again. There's no way his mom will let him."

"Please tell me you've called her," I hoped, "If anyone deserves some sort of peace of mind, it's her. Considering Bolt is her son."

"She knows," he assured, "I just hung up with her before I called you. I told her that I was going to keep him for a little while. Mostly to get the tattoo on his neck removed. She doesn't need to see him like this. It would only upset her more."

"Noiz..." I awed, "You're so sweet."

"I'm not sweet," I could just see him now, all pouty and bright red at this point, "I'm an asshole."

"He's not wrong," Theo groaned behind me, "What's all the squealing about?"

"Is that Theo?" Noiz asked.

"Morning, brother," he waved halfheartedly.

"Angel," Noiz got territorial, "Why is Theo there?"

"He spent the night last night," I explained.

"I'll go make a new passport," Theo slipped out of bed.

"Let me guess," Noiz sighed out, "Having a hard time sleeping?"

"Yeah," I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best.

"I feel your pain," Noiz agreed, "I miss you, Angel."

"I miss you, too," my chest hurt, "Hey...Now that Bolt is home where he belongs, you think I could come home where I belong, too?"

"Not yet," he shot me down, "Not until I smoke out Morphine. We'll find where the rats went and end them."

"Ok…" I wanted to go home. Not that this has been exactly difficult to take. Whether it be the spacious living or the beautiful views of Berlin I got to wake up to every morning since I got here. But none of it had Noiz.

"Hey, Angel," Theo tapped on my shoulder, "I have to go. I have a company to run."

"Ok," I let him go, "Thank you for last night, Theo. I really appreciate it."

"No problem," he kissed my cheek, "I'll see you later."

"Bye."

"Bye, Wil!" Theo chirped on his way out, "I spooned your girlfriend!"

"Kids," Noiz grumbled, "What are you going to do?"

It was so heartwarming to hear Noiz talk about his brother like that. Anyone else would've torn Theo a new ass for doing what he did. But Noiz knows better. He knows I'm a good girl. I wouldn't cheat on him. Definitely not with his little brother. That's just sick. And I'm pretty sure he trusts Theo enough not to screw around with me. He's trusted him enough to leave me with him.

"The first chance I get," Noiz promised, "I'll be on the next flight to Berlin, ok?"

"Ok." The sooner, the better.

"I have to go," he said, "I think I hear the kid moving around."

"Give him a kiss for me," I requested.

"I will," he obliged, "I love you, Angel."

"I love you, too."

Click.

Good. At least I knew Bolt would be ok. He was in Noiz's capable, caring hands. He could pretend and say he was an asshole all he wanted to, but I've seen him take care of Agatha. I've seen him take care of Clear. I've seen him with my little peanut Chase. He's a very sweet, nurturing soul deep in his core.

And I couldn't wait to get back to him. I couldn't wait to go home. I missed Midorijima. I missed the normalcy of my mundane day to day life. I missed drawing on my tablet with my head in my man's lap while Noiz was playing some video game of some sort. I needed to go back so bad. Where are you hiding, Morphine…?

Well, since somehow, my caffeine junkie boyfriend has an electric tea kettle, but didn't have a coffee pot, I grabbed my bag and my Agatha and headed down to the café on the corner. I needed something to wake my ass up. Noiz calling was all well and good, but that was the first night of decent sleep I've had since I touched down in Germany. And I had it interrupted.

I struggled to order my latte before some kind soul translated for me. Bless them. I was not awake enough to deal with a language barrier. If only Theo wouldn't have left so early, he'd get my coffee for me. all that mattered was I was getting it. I sat down at a little table tucked away in the back corner and took a small notebook out of my bag. I needed to get back to work on the story line for the manga. I hadn't touched it since this whole Morphine thing.

"Hello, again," a familiar voice greeted me.

I looked up and saw my stalker from yesterday, making me a little nervous, "Oh…Hi…It's you again."

"Mind if I sit?" he asked, pulling the chair out.

"I guess not," I allowed, regardless of what I said.

"So, this is the cute girl from yesterday," another really attractive blonde guy joined us.

I blinked a few times, "Am I on drugs and seeing double or are there two of you?"

"There's two people here," the other one sat, "I promise."

"Are you guys twins?" I asked, "Or at least brothers?"

"No," my stalker assured. The only difference between these two was that the other one wore glasses.

"We get that a lot…"

"I'm not surprised," I tried to ignore them, hoping they'd get the hint and leave me alone.

"You look a little tired, Mika," Stalker pointed out.

Rude, "I just woke up a little while ago."

"What are you plans for today?" he asked, listening intently.

"Um," I wasn't sure what to say. I didn't know who these guys were. Think, Angel, think. Remember Mika's backstory, "I'll be working on some sketches today."

"Those can wait," Glasses took my notebook, "Why don't you come with us?"

"No," I declined, grabbing my doodles, "Sorry. I should be going."

When I got up, I could hardly stand. All of a sudden, I got really dizzy. What the hell…? Where did that come from? I've eaten today. I've had my coffee. I should be ok. If that's the case, then, were did the dizzy spells come from?

"Is everything alright?" Stalker caught me.

This isn't good. It wasn't taking me much to lose balance. And my head had started throbbing. I needed to get back to Noiz's penthouse, then call Theo. Theo could probably get me to a doctor and translate for me. these two were giving me some really bad vibes.

"I'm fine," I wiggled out of his embrace, "I just need to get home."

"You might as well come with us," Glasses took my other arm. My God, I looked like a pimp, "That sedative should be in full effect by now."

"Sedative?" I rubbed my eyes. Tunnel vision started setting in.

"You really shouldn't be so trusting of complete strangers," he grinned darkly, "Especially in a foreign country where you don't know the language."

"It's nice to finally meet you, Angel," Stalker mirrored his doppelganger.

And in that brief moment of clarity, I knew exactly who these two were. But none of that mattered now as my vision went completely black and I slipped out of consciousness.

 **A/N: Let's see…Two attractive blonde gentlemen walk into the café. They look like twins, but we know they aren't. And the only difference between them is that one of them wears glasses…Gee. I wonder who these two douchebags are. I will say this, though. I'm glad to see Bolt back where he belongs. And I love seeing Noiz step up like that. However, next chapter is going to be kind of a rough one. I may or may not already have a start on it…But it's going to be a rough one. Just to forewarn you. Hold on tight. Get yourself a blanket and some chamomile tea. You'll be alright. See you next chapter! xx**


	23. His Name is Alpha

**A/N: Hi, guys. Just a quick heads up, the reviews aren't working on my end, so if you want to leave them either the guest way or in the inbox, I'll get to you in the most timely of timely fashions. Until then, if FictionPress could get on that, *in my best Bill Lumbergh voice* that'd be greeeeat…Enjoy!**

I looked out the window next to me when I finally came to again. Dark. Nighttime. Did I really sleep that long? What did they slip me? Then again, I didn't even know where the hell I was. A hotel room, maybe? And a damn nice one at that. Whoever took me must have gone out of their way to make this as much like Noiz's penthouse as they could. I did a quick scan around the room. Bundled up in the corner was a lion sleeping soundly with a snake coiled around the lion's paw in the same state.

Even worse, I saw a tiny body on the table in pieces. A tiny, black and white body, torn up very deliberately. I'd commend whoever did it if it wasn't...her...They got to Agatha. I know I should have left her at Noiz's penthouse. Probably tore her up, so I couldn't be tracked. When this isw all over, I think Noiz and I will have to pull some all nighters to put my little Humpty Dumpty back together again.

How could I do that now? Whatever they used to knock me out with paralyzed me, too. I couldn't move if I wanted to. Even my vision was still a little spotty. My eyes burned like hell from sleeping in my contacts. My head was killing me. All I wanted to do was go back to Midorijima. I wanted to curl up in my cozy apartment with my overly pierced boyfriend and my sassy little panda and returen to my regular, day to day life. I didn't ask for this. I didn't ask for Morphine to come and royally bone me.

"Well," a voice broke the silence, "Good morning. It's good to see you're awake. How are you feeling?"

"Why can't I move?" I could hardly speak either.

"It must be the sedative wearing off," another voice spoke.

"Where am I?" I asked.

"You're still in Berlin. Just in our hotel."

"Who are you?"

"We're big fans of yours, Angel," one of them sat with me. And if I didn't know any better, I'd think I had someone's hand on my face, "We've been wanting to get to know you since your plane touched down in Midorijima all those years ago."

"How did you know me then?"

"We keep our tabs," he said, stroking my cheek, "You don't need to worry about how. We're just glad to have you with us."

"Why?" I started to get a little more of my voice back, "What do you want with me?"

"You did wake up for us," I could make out their faces now. It was my stalker and his double from the cafe. The one in the glasses had my face cradled so delicately in my palm, "I guess we could at least reward you with an introduction. Over there is Trip. You've already met him. He gushed about you so much that I was starting to get jealous."

"You really are big fans, aren't you?" Some of my motor functions started coming back. Of course, they thought of that. I was restrained to the bed, "If I've met Trip, who are you?"

"Virus," his lips graced my knuckles, "It really is so wonderful to be this close to you. I understand why Noiz wanted to keep you away from us. So he can have you all to himself. Always thought the little brat was kind of selfish."

"Who's Noiz?" I tried to play dumb, hoping that cutting off ties with him could keep him safe.

"No, No," Virus ran his thumb over my cheek bone, "Don't lie to me like that, Angel...That's not nice."

"We've been watching you for a few years," Trip reminded me, "You don't think we don't know you and Noiz are a thing?"

Damn. I tried, "You really shouldn't call him a brat. He's probably not as you remember."

"It has been a while since we've dropped in on Noiz," Virus stared deep into my eyes like he wanted to eat me, "He definitely has taste. That's for sure. Women, men, doesn't matter. He knows a delicious creature when he sees one."

"Definitely," Trip agreed, giving me the same hungry eyes.

"You never answered my question," I ignored their advances, "What do you want me for?"

"Feisty one, isn't she?" Virus ran his finger down my jaw line, "You have to earn that answer. Just like the first one."

"And how do you propose I do that?" I asked.

"What do you think, Virus?" Trip looked over at him, "Should we see if she'll be a good girl for Alpha yet?"

"All in good time," Virus shut him down, "She'll meet Alpha soon enough. Do you know who we are, Angel?"

"You're Morphine," I snapped, "You took a fifteen year old kid and screwed with his head. All so you could smoke me out."

"Not necessarily," Virus explained, "We know if we were going to get to you, we'd have to get to Noiz first. After he and Aoba broke up, we didn't have anyone we could use. That is, until the kid showed up. What was his name again...? I don't even remember. But Noiz had gotten awfully attached."

"So, he made a good diversion," Trip continued, "We didn't anticipate him sending you away, though."

"Lucky us," Virus grinned darkly.

"How did you know about Bolt?" I asked "You were following me."

"We've kept an eye on everyone since Platinum Jail fell," he went on, "We know how you and Noiz met. We know you worked for Mink when you were still living in San Diego. Just recently, you watched while Noiz took care of Clear. And Aoba just sold you parts for your trash heap of an Allmate. Hell, before we grabbed the kid from Ruff Rabbit, you visited Koujaku in hopes of going incognito."

"You're not keeping anything from us," Trip promised, "The best part is when we got to see you play Rhyme against your ex-boyfriend. You're pretty good at it. The best we've ever seen."

"Imagine putting her in the ring with SlyBlue," Virus gave his double a nudge.

"I'd actually pay money to see that," he agreed.

"So," I brought it back, "Is that why you want me? Because I can play Rhyme? Because I'm the best there is?"

"That is a perk," Virus wrapped his arms around me, helping me sit up a little, "I bet Noiz knows. He did take your blood after all."

How long have these creepy weirdos been stalking me? The more I thought about it, the more it made me cringe. But as long as I was cooperating and playing nice with them, Trip and Virus were answering my questions, "What would Noiz know about me from taking my blood?"

"How about…" Trip sat with me on the other side, "We just put you back to sleep until Noiz gets here and he can tell you himself? He's bound to come after you eventually. I bet he realized the little runt was a mere distraction."

"Why do you want me?" I shook them both off me.

"You'll find out soon enough," Virus pulled me forcefully against his chest, "Until then, let's have a little fun, shall we? Trip, go get Alpha."

"My pleasure," Trip had left Virus and me alone to go get whoever Alpha is.

"Angel," Virus cradled me, "You've been awfully cavalier through all of this. Kidnapped, drugged, bound. I've seen people crack under less. Good for you."

"What can I say?" I growled, "I'm American. I'm scrappy and stubborn."

"In that case," he stroked my hair, "How about I reward you a little more? Would you care for a story?"

"Depends on the story."

"This is the story," Virus began, "about a young American scientist named Patrick. He had just married a woman named Lucy and she was the love of his life."

Hold on…This was starting to sound familiar, "Those are my parents."

"You catch on quickly," he praised, "Patrick had headed a research team that was trying to unlock the secrets of the human brain. How to tap in to the unused ninety percent. And they were making some serious strides in the right direction. However, Patrick and Lucy wanted something to bring a little extra joy in their lives. Unfortunately, Patrick couldn't get Lucy pregnant."

"What?" I gave him a look, "What do you mean, Patrick couldn't get Lucy pregnant? Of course she could. Do I not exist?"

"See," Virus smirked, "That's where the story gets interesting. They were going to try some specialists, but every time Lucy would go to find a phone number, she'd break down in tears. Seeing his wife like this wasn't very easy for Patrick either. Especially knowing that he was the problem. That's when he decided to apply his knowledge of science and human anatomy and give his wife exactly what she wanted. Although, what he was doing wasn't exactly…ethical. Or legal. You were his greatest achievement, Angel."

"I know," I nodded, "He's told me that on many an occasion."

"But I don't think you realize the extent of it," he continued, "You were created. I don't really know the technical things, but have you ever given much thought to your father's lab?"

"Not really," I said, "Why?"

"His lab was a subsidiary of a company in Japan," Virus explained a little further, "Look at the names of the people that headed it. They didn't even use their real names. Thurston. Olsen. Underwood. And Evans. Or…If we take the first letter of each name. T. O. U. E. The name of the man that really headed up that lab. He had a lab in Midorijima, too. Only instead of working on how to tap into the brain like your father was, he was working on something more along the lines of…Well, let's not beat around the bush here. It was mind control. Even had his own testing facility called Platinum Jail. Cleverly disguised as a place for people to enjoy themselves. And he had all intentions of using your father's research. That is until Mink put a bullet in his head."

"So, who's using it now?" I wondered.

"No one," he moved uncomfortably close, "The research is complete. And you are living, breathing proof of that."

In my confusion, the door had creaked open and Trip had come back with a seemingly familiar face, putting me a little at ease, "Clear…"

"Not exactly," he grinned.

"You're one of his brothers," I pieced it together.

"The only one now," he corrected, "Alpha 2 was weak. He didn't survive the fall of Platinum Jail. Now, there's just me."

"Let's see how you react to DyE," Trip looked me over.

"What's DyE?" I asked, keeping the brave face on.

"You'll see," Virus held me tight, "Just keep an eye on Alpha. He's going to show you something wonderful. It's time to trip the light fantastic."

Alpha opened his mouth and the most beautiful sound came from it. Like the lightest, airiest techno I had ever heard. And accompanying it was an incredible light show coming from his eyes. Dazzling flashes of blues and greens and pinks sparkled from Alpha. For whatever reason, it made me feel so at peace. So blissful. Nothing could go wrong…

"You like that?" Trip asked, noticing my sudden enhanced elation. I didn't even care about anything anymore. Agatha in pieces didn't bother me. Being in the same room with the guys that kidnapped not only me, but Bolt, too, didn't bother me. Noiz being over a thousand miles away didn't bother me. Anything that was causing me any pain or misery was just gone.

"I'm…" I couldn't even describe it, "I'm so happy…"

"That's right," Virus cradled me, "And that's all we want for you. We want you to be happy, Angel. We want the world to be happy. Is that such a crime?"

"No," I shook my head, enjoying the softness of my hair on my cheeks.

"You have that power, too, you know," he told, "You can make people happy just with the sound of your voice. You're like a natural anti-depressant. You make people so happy that they could be in the process of being brutally murdered, but they'd die with a smile on their face."

"But just like with every other drug," Trip joined in, "There are side effects. And yours are the strongest we've ever heard of. You put people in an extreme state of happiness. But as soon as you leave them, their intense euphoria turns into borderline suicidal depression."

"Imagine putting you on a global scale," Virus kissed my cheek, sending chills up my spine, "We need you, Angel. You're the key to finishing Toue's work."

"And that's exactly what we plan on doing," Trip took my hand and pinned it down to the bed. Virus did the same thing.

"What are you doing?" I asked so absent mindedly.

"You're one of us now," Virus took a lighter from his pocket, "And going by your wrist, you're Ruff Rabbit. We can't have you marked by Ruff Rabbit, yet be with Morphine. I'm not sure how much this is going to actually hurt you, Angel. I've never been on the light drug."

He held the flame against my skin, effectively burning my tattoo off. The pain was immense. There's no doubt. But I was so looped up, I couldn't even feel anything. I was borderline losing all control of any and all bodily functions. But I didn't care. Until I had passed out from the pain.

 **A/N: Hello, Morphine. Always a delight to see two of the biggest assholes in history. But see…I feel like I'm one of the very, very minute few that actually kind of like Trip and Virus. Yes. They're dicks. Yes. They're disgusting. But I kind of like them. It's the same thing as my like for the Galactic Empire. Or my love for Loki. Or my love for Moriarty. Or my love for Crowley or Lucifer. I have a problem. Me and villains, man. It's a very vicious cycle. But I'm not sure what it is about Trip and Virus that does it for me. And the more chaotic they are, the better. I'll see myself out now. See you next chapter! xx**


	24. His Name is Morphine

**A/N: Quick trigger warning, guys. This is kind of an abusive chapter. And it's going to screw with your head. If you can't handle that kind of thing, I'll recap for you in the author's note of the next chapter.**

Ouch…What the hell happened? I hurt worse than I did before. I looked around the empty room. I could hardly move yet again, but I was still in Virus and Trip's hotel room. My memory was still a little sketchy. Where in the hell did this bur scar come on my wrist come from? My Ruff Rabbit tattoo was gone! And a serious itching sensation radiated on my neck. Dammit…They got to me and laid their claims.

I wanted nothing more than to go home. God only knows how long I've been here. I really hoped Noiz was on his way. Or at least Theo. But I didn't want to get that little sweetheart wrapped up in this Morphine mess. He didn't need or deserve that. I just wanted to get back to his brother and put my tiny panda back together. And I can pretend that none of this ever happened and go back to my regular simple life.

"Good morning, Angel," Trip's voice broke the silence, dripping with eerie, mob boss connotations.

"How do you feel?" Virus followed, sitting on the bed with me.

"Homicidal," I growled at him.

"Beautiful," he stroked my cheek, "Let that beautiful rage of yours continue to bubble up. Show us the gorgeous fear you've been suppressing since you got here."

"You're a sadistic son of a bitch, aren't you?" I snapped, glaring a hole through him.

"I try," Virus shrugged, taking a bit of twisted pride in it, "Now, since you're up for making snappy comebacks, I'm assuming you'll keep the same kind of energy for a little project we have for you."

"No," I put my foot down.

"You don't even know what we'll be having you do," Trip pointed out.

"I don't care," I stood my ground, "No."

"That's just too bad," Virus went on, "We're going to make a video for Noiz."

"No."

"In this video," he blew me off, "You're going to be begging for your life. Trip, can you get the bag out of the closet please?"

"It'd be my pleasure," Trip took a garment bag from the closet and threw it at my feet, "Put this on."

I sat up some and looked inside. This looked like something from my cosplay closet. In fact, it was something from my cosplay closet. Aside from my neko maid costumes, my second go-to was always a princess of some sort. My favorite one was always one from this older video game that came out when I was four and I had been in love with the franchise ever since. And that's what I had in front of me. All that was missing was the little blue flute, "Why?"

"You're his princess, Angel," Virus grinned darkly, "And he has to rescue his princess, doesn't he?"

"No, moron," I groaned, "The video. What's the video for?"

"He's taking too long to get here," he explained, grabbing a hold of my face, "And you should be careful with that sharp tongue of yours."

He's lucky my motor functions were a little stunted at the moment or my sharp tongue would've stabbed his heart out, "What do you want with Noiz…?"

"Really?" Trip gave me a look, "We're yakuza, Angel. And you're wondering what we could do with someone with Noiz's particular set of skills? He's as indispensable as they come. A hacker of his level in the right hands can cause some serious damage."

"Now," Virus got his camera and set up the lighting, "Get dressed."

"I can't," I snarled, "I'm still partially paralyzed."

"Well then," a really unsettling look swept across his face, "Isn't this a fun turn of events?"

Virus grabbed the bottom of my skirt and pulled it down around my knees, "What the hell are you doing?!"

"You're not moving," he reminded, "And you need to be Noiz's princess. This whole video will crumble if you don't look the part."

I had no choice. I had to lay there while these two stripped me down and redressed me around my restraints. If I had a quarter for every time I swallowed stomach bile through this, I'd have enough to repair my acid burned esophagus. After this, I'm going to need a lot of showers and a lot of liquor. And maybe a little bit of therapy, if I'm feeling adventurous.

"I'd say it's a job well done," Trip glanced me over, "Should we get started?"

"I think so," Virus turned on the camera, "And…Action."

I sat still in protest, "No."

"Come on, Angel," Virus let out a heavy, exasperated sigh, "Give me something. Work with me. You're on our team. We should be working together."

"I might be marked by Morphine," I growled, "But don't think for a second that I'm ever going to be Morphine."

"How does Noiz put up with you?" he turned very dark, very quickly, "I guess we're doing this the hard way then."

I could feel a twitch in my arm and a twinge in my neck, "What's the hard way?"

"We don't usually make it a habit to hit a woman," Virus got rough, slugging me in the jaw, "But you've been the bane of our existence and this is what happens when you don't cooperate."

Ouch. Sure, it hurt like hell, but I couldn't let them see me sweat. I stirred up some tears, which wasn't very difficult at this point. The hard part was going to be making them stop. My voice broke, "Please…Stop…"

"There we go," Trip grabbed the camera, shoving it in my face, "There's what we were looking for."

"Virus…" I wept, "Come here…"

"What is it?" Virus asked, moving closer to me, wiping my tears from my cheeks.

I was always taught to never throw the first punch in a fight. But to make damn sure I threw the last. I made use of the feeling and control of my neck muscles again and headbutted that asshole right between his eyes, popping a lens out of his glasses. I wasn't going to cooperate with them. I don't care how much they try to beat me. Free will was more important than letting these two morons run the world, "No."

"You little bitch!" Virus snapped, gripping tight around my throat, "I really hope whoever we end up selling you to has a much shorter temper and a lot more strength than me."

"Noiz," Trip sneered in the camera, "Come and get your pain in the ass girlfriend. And never meet your heroes."

"Noiz, no!" I squealed, "Don't! Not alone! Cavalry up!"

"We're done playing nice with you, Angel," Virus regained his vision, pulling a spare pair of glasses from his pocket, "We've been nothing but gracious hosts to you."

"Virus," Trip interrupted him, "The video's sent."

"Good," he rubbed his eyes, "Where's SlyBlue when you need him?"

"Excellent question."

"Go get Alpha," Virus demanded, grabbing what looked like a rolled up pencil case. Only this one was full of syringes, "We need to knock her back out. And up her dosage."

"On it," Trip left the two of us alone while he ran to grab Clear's angrier lookalike.

"A couple of these," Virus jabbed the needle in my vein, "And not only will you be out cold, but you'll be trapped in your own mind for a while. Only one thing could save you and I'm pretty sure it's not going to come for you."

"What?" I was already starting to feel dizzy.

"This was mixed with you in mind," he stuck the second one in, pushing down on the plunger, "At least while you're in your head, you'll be able to use your own power in sort of an opposite fashion. In the way you really wouldn't want it to work. This particular serum feeds on your fear, Angel. And it's going to amplify it tenfold."

"Why are you telling me all this?" I wondered, already starting to get a little scared.

"To freak you out even more," he grinned as Alpha had come back with Trip, "Welcome back."

"Always happy to see you, Angel," Alpha sat in front of me. Virus resituated me in his lap, holding my eyes open, "Keep looking at me."

I tried my damnedest to keep myself looking down, but that was the thing about the lights that came from Alpha. I couldn't help but look at them. They were too beautiful. And I loved it. Every minute of it. Even though I knew I shouldn't, it had such a car crash effect on me. And I slipped out of consciousness into the darker recesses of my mind. Into a place I never ever wanted to go again.

When I eventually woke up, I knew I wasn't in Berlin anymore. I was in my old apartment? I was back in Midorijima. At least I had that going for me. In my apartment. In my town. In my bed. Everything was perfectly ok. That is, until I rolled over. And saw someone sleeping next to me that I never really cared to see again.

"What are you doing here?" my heart stopped.

"What are you freaking out about, Angel?" Yuki sat up in my bed, "Why wouldn't I be here? I live here."

"No, you don't," I assured, "We haven't been together in months."

"I think you had too much to drink last night," he gave me a look, "Good thing we're only doing that once."

"Doing what…?" I started to get really nervous.

"Our wedding," Yuki pulled me against him, not letting me go, "You should feel honored that I even considered taking you back after what had happened."

"Wait a minute," my hearing must have been screwed up, "Our what and what happened?"

"Wow," he scoffed, "You really did get trashed. Our wedding? We got married yesterday, Angel. I see how high I rank in your eyes."

"What about Noiz?" I jumped up, "I'm pretty sure we broke up months ago!"

"And after his funeral," Yuki explained, "You came over to my apartment and begged me to take you back."

There was an F word I didn't want to hear. I fell to my knees, "His funeral…?"

"Yeah," he nodded, "He refused to work with Morphine when he had gone to rescue you in Germany, so they put a bullet in his brain. That was six months ago, Angel. I thought you were over that."

"No!" I squealed, "How would I ever be able to get over Noiz being dead?! I love him! And definitely not you!"

"Listen, bitch," Yuki pinned me down on the floor and whipped his hand against my face, "You're back with me now. Noiz isn't coming back. And it's all your fault. If you wouldn't have come out of Rhyme retirement, they never would've found you. You would've been off their radar and Noiz would still be alive. But all because you wanted to impress your little rebound boyfriend, he's now dead. And it's all because of you."

"No," I started bawling. Partially from the pain, partially from the guilt, "Noiz isn't dead…Agatha…Where's she?"

"That thing was probably melted down for the new models," he figured, "Your Allmate was a lost cause anyway. Why you decided to keep it as long as you did is beyond me. Waste of time."

"Agatha wasn't a waste of time!" I snapped, "I'm sure if I can get all of her parts back, I could…I could fix her. She'll be ok."

"She's a scrap heap, Angel," Yuki slapped me again, "Am I going to have to beat your delusions out of you?"

No. This wasn't right. Agatha would be ok. Noiz is still alive. There's no way in hell I would've married Yuki. I know better. I wouldn't have done that sober. Hell, even drunk, I think I'd know better. This can't be real. This can't be happening. Noiz…Noiz…

Knock, knock.

"Get up," Yuki pulled me onto my feet and threw me toward the door, "Get that."

Battered, bruising, and grieving, I stumbled to the door only to find a beautiful, blue haired boy on the other side. The other grieving widow, "Aoba…?"

"Angel!" he threw his arms around me, "I'm so happy to see you."

"What are you doing here?" I reveled in his embrace.

"Are you ok?" Aoba looked me over, "My God, what happened to you?"

"Nothing," I could feel Yuki's piercing glare watching over me, "I fell…"

"Do you think I could talk to you?" he asked, "Alone."

"Anything you have to say to her," Yuki stepped in, "You can say to me, too."

"Really," Aoba assured, "This is between her and me."

"Who do you think you are?" Yuki grew a pair, shoving Aoba into the railing outside our apartment, "You don't talk to her. You talk to me."

"No," Aoba fought back, "I'm talking to her, not you."

"Why?" Yuki snapped, "You want to get in her pants, too? Like every other guy she knows? What's so special about her? Angel's replaceable and desperate. Why else would she have come crawling back to me after Noiz died?"

"What?" Aoba was just as taken by surprise as I was, "What do you mean, after Noiz died? Angel, I'm not judging you or anything, but how screwed up is your head?"

"I…"

"I said, you don't talk to her!" Yuki drove his fist into Aoba's face, "I own her. You have anything you say to her, you say it to me."

"Angel," Aoba ignored him, "I see Noiz really has a type, doesn't he? This isn't going to make any sense to you, but I'm about to destroy your consciousness. I'm going to destroy Yuki's girl. I'm going to destroy your worst fear and I'm going to make this all better. It's going to be ok. All you have to do is wake up for me. Can you do that?"

"I'll try…" I spoke meekly.

"I said," Yuki wrapped his hand around Aoba's throat.

But his words were cut off by Aoba grabbing a hold of his face, making him shatter into a million pieces. I wasn't really sure what had just happened, but Yuki looked like a mirrored mosaic on the floor. And now, all I had to do was wake up.

 **A/N: I thought I'd give Angel her own Scrap sequence. Because what's Dramatical Murder without a little Scrap? I really liked the way this chapter turned out. Going by my outline, I didn't think it was going to end up as long as what it was. Good for me. High five, Lumi. Now, for all my Fullmetal Alchemist fans that also happen to read my DmmD, Happy Fullmetal Day to you! Don't forget…Anyway, I'll see you next chapter! xx**


	25. His Name is Alive

"Looks like they ran off," a familiar voice called out, "Spineless punks..."

"You said you would keep her safe, Noiz," another boomed angrily, "Look where she ended up. In a hotel in Berlin, being held captive by Morphine, with a serious burn on her wrist."

"This was me keeping her safe," I knew that one. I could tell that voice any day, "I got her out of Midorijima. I got her out of the damn country. Hell, a different continent altogether! I had her under fake documentation in one of the most secure buildings in Germany. How much safer do you want her, Mink?"

"Should we really be fighting at a time like this?" a softer, sweeter, slightly muffled voice broke them up, wrapping an ace bandage around my wrist, "We should focus on Angel coming back to us."

"Clear's right," I could hear that one in my core. Weird. Then again, I was still pretty out of it from the cocktail serum that Virus shot me up with and the wicked nightmare, "She's still probably pretty shaken."

"Aoba," Koujaku asked, "What did you find when you were rummaging around in Angel's head?"

"That would be something you'd have to ask Angel about," Aoba shot him down, "Trust me. If I know Angel as well as I think I do now, you shouldn't ask about it."

Bless you, Aoba.

"Alright," Koujaku let it go, "I won't. We'll let it remain a mystery."

"Whatever Trip and Virus gave her amplified her worst fears," Aoba explained, "And it brought them to life in a nightmare she couldn't wake up from."

"I couldn't imagine a more torturous hell for her," Mink sat on the bed with me. I felt his warmth radiating toward me. And for a moment, it offered a nice comfort.

"Clear," Noiz chimed in, "Do you see the syringes anywhere?"

"They're in the trash can," Clear reported.

"Anything in them?" he asked, "Even the slightest drop?"

"Bone dry."

"Damn," Noiz growled, "I guess we'll have to get it the hard way then. Mink, could you hold her arm still for me?"

"Sure," Mink grabbed a hold of my wrist and pinned my arm down while Noiz lined his Coil up on my vein.

"Ow..." I jerked, feeling the needle go in my skin, "What the hell, Noiz? I told you to ask next time."

I opened my eyes and felt my boyfriend's embrace enveloped around me, "Danke Gott. Du bist lebendig..."

I wasn't there enough to understand German quite yet, "What...?"

"You're alive..." he cradled me against his chest.

"So are you..." I sighed out, "And that's all that matters."

I caught a glimpse of Aoba wincing out of the corner of my eye. He knew. He and I now shared a bond that I could never have with any of the others. Noiz looked at me like I was on drugs (which, in my defense, I was), "Of course I am. Did you really think I'd let Morphine get to me? I don't think so."

That hit me a lot harder than what I wanted it to. The lump in the back of my throat clawed its way up and I did all I could to shake it off. But that wasn't happening, so I just nuzzled my face into Noiz's chest, hoping I could hide the tears from him. Aoba sat on the bed with the two of us, taking my hand, "Angel, you do understand that what happened in your head just now isn't real, right? None of that is going to happen. We're all here. Everything's ok."

"I know," I wiped my eyes, "Thank you, Aoba. I was in really deep trouble and you saved me. You saved my life."

"She's still coming down from the light drug," Mink assumed, "I guarantee that if we'd let her walk, she wouldn't be able to keep a straight line."

"Probably not," Noiz looked me over, "Her eyes are bloodshot. Her pupils look like pinholes. Anyone have any bright ideas on how to get her back to normal?"

"Do we just let her ride it out?" Koujaku wondered.

"I have one!" Clear chirped, "Alpha gave her DyE in the first place. Who do we know that is the exact opposite of him?"

"You," Aoba praised.

"You're an iPod on legs, Clear," Noiz cuddled me, "You even make the old dial up noises in your sleep."

"Noiz," Clear wept, "You're so mean!"

"Noiz," I scolded him, "He's trying to help. And if he is the exact opposite of Alpha, it can't hurt."

"Are you sure you want to do this?" he worried, "I just got you back, Angel. I'd hate for something else to happen to you."

"I'm sure," I promised, "It's Clear. What's he going to do?"

"It's not him I'm worried about," Noiz went on, "It's what could happen that scares me. What if Morphine finds a way to remotely hack him?"

"My firewalls are pretty air tight, Noiz," Clear reminded, "You made them that way. There's no way that Morphine or anyone could hack them."

"Nothing's unhackable," his voice shook, "A few lines of computer code, Clear, and you're screwed."

"Don't worry," I put my hand to his cheek, "I'll be ok."

"You all should wait outside," Clear ordered, "I'd hate for this to have adverse effects on you."

"I'm not entirely comfortable with this," Noiz cringed.

"I don't want her hurt either," he assured, "And this is going to make her better."

With a little hesitation, Noiz reluctantly gave me over to Clear, "Alright. We'll be outside. And Clear?"

"Yes, Noiz?"

"If you make her worse," Noiz turned dark, "I will upload a virus onto your hard drive that will eat at your programming from the inside out."

"Understood," he nodded.

"Angel..."

"Yeah, baby?" I was drifting in and out.

But I was awake enough to feel his lips on my forehead, "I love you."

"I love you, too," I curled into Clear's chest, ready to fall asleep again.

"Angel," Clear jostled me a little bit, "Are you ready?"

"For what?"

"What I'm about to do," Clear explained, "is kind of like what Alpha did to you. Can I sing for you?"

"Sure, sweetheart," I yawned, "Go ahead."

"Alright," he began, "Yurayura yurameku. Nami no ma ni. Kirakira kagayaku. Koe wa tada yure. Anata e to..."

The more Clear went on with his song, the more mental clarity I managed to gain. It gave me almost the same feeling of peaceful bliss. Only this time, it was more relaxing than amplifying. And I loved it. I never wanted this to end, "Clear..."

"Yes, Angel?"

"Do you think I could get that in a recording?" I asked.

"I'm not going on tour any time soon," he giggled a bit, "But I'm glad you're back. If you ever need it again, all you have to do is ask."

"Thank you," I kissed his cheek, "Really, Clear. You've all been so wonderful to me."

"You're special to all of us in one way or another," Clear told, "You took care of Noiz when he needed it the most. Whether Master wants to admit it or not, he's grateful for that. He still loves Noiz. Maybe not the way he used to, but it's still there. And you made an impression on Koujaku. You're the first client he's ever had that's seen him as a person instead of a piece of meat. That's ever exhibited such patience. He doesn't get much rejection from women, so that was a new thing for him. And Mink? Mink adores you. He sees you as the little sister he never had. He sees you like family."

"We've known each other longer than I've known any of the rest of you," I admitted, "I remember when I was still living in San Diego and Yuki had gone to Midorijima to see his family for a week. I was by myself. I had called into work a few days in a row. I could hardly move. I had some really bad cramps that made it hard for me to walk and my back felt like someone had used me as a trampoline. Mink closed the shop to come take care of me. Mink can give one hell of a massage, for future reference. Just so you know. I could use one right now, to be honest."

"Alpha really got to you, didn't he?" Clear held me tighter.

"Yeah," I winced, scratching at my wrist, "I'm just glad I didn't feel that."

"Was the DyE that strong?"

I nodded, "Mixed with whatever sedatives they juiced me with."

"I'm going to let the others back in," Clear announced, "Is that ok with you?"

"It's fine."

He put me gently on the bed and grabbed the door, "You can come back in now. We're done."

"What about her?" Noiz jumped down his throat.

"Relax," I rolled my eyes, "I'm fine. Back to normal. Clear took good care of me."

"Yay!" Clear chimed, "I did good!"

If I didn't know any better, I'd think his face actually contorted to an emoticon. Nonetheless, I would be eternally grateful for all five of these boys in front of me. I had the same feelings for these guys as I did for my Ruff Rabbit family. I knew this wouldn't be over until Morphine was taken care of, but if this was what I had for security, I had nothing to worry about.

"Noiz," I pulled him down to me, "Can we go home yet?"

"Yeah, Angel," he held me against his chest, "We can go home."

"You're coming back with me," Mink stepped in, "You're getting out of Midorijima."

"Ok, cool," I agreed, "So, Noiz and I are-"

"No, Angel," he cut me off, "You're coming with me. Noiz isn't."

"Um, excuse me?" I started to get a little pissed.

"Morphine's still out there," Mink put his foot down, "Noiz and Aoba are going to keep their tabs and you're going to come back with me."

"If this whole situation has taught us anything," I sat up, "It's that Noiz and I shouldn't be separated. I'm not going back to San Diego without him. I'm not too terribly keen about leaving Midorijima, but if it has to be done, then it has to be done. I'm not leaving without him."

"Angel..." Noiz settled me, "I don't want you to go without me either, but-"

"But nothing!" I snapped, "I don't care if I'm being a martyr anymore, Noiz. I am NOT leaving without you this time."

"But Mink can actually protect you." He was siding with Mink? What the hell?

"So can you," I argued, "I'm not going without Noiz. That's final."

"Angel..." Mink grumbled, "If I have to drag you out of here, I will."

"No."

"Angel..."

"Mink," I glared into his very soul, "No."

I knew Mink could be this rough, tough brute, but when it came to me, he was hopeless. I was his weakness. Mink would do anything to keep me happy. Even if it meant giving in to my stubbornness. And I could make him fold like a cheap suit. Mink let out an exasperated sigh, "Fine. Noiz, you're coming, too."

"But..."

"No, buts," I shoved my finger in his face, "You're coming with me. Whatever you'd be doing in Midorijima can be done in San Diego, too."

"Alright," Noiz didn't take much either.

"Now, if it's all the same to you guys," I lowered my head, "I need to have some words with my boyfriend. Alone."

"Sure, Angel," Aoba took everyone out of the room. And it was just Noiz and me. The way things should be.

"You're painfully stubborn," he smiled a little, "Did you know that?"

"I had a feeling," I wrapped my arms around him.

"How are you feeling?" Noiz worried, "Physically speaking."

"I'm drained," I rested my head on his chest, "And my head hurts, but all in all, I'll be fine."

"Good," he pulled me into a tender, passionate kiss.

"Noiz," I stopped him, despite every fiber of my being not wanting to, "Can I ask you something?"

"Ask anything you want to."

"Did you know about my voice?" I wondered, "When you took my blood that day, did you know?"

"I did see some abnormalities in your brain activity," Noiz confessed, "And I did a little digging when we were at your parents' house. I was talking with your father about what he did before he retired. And he told me everything. More or less because I could appreciate it. Scientifically speaking, what he did was quite a feat. The more he talked about you, little things started making sense. I had never been this happy with Aoba and any time I'd be around you, as soon as you'd leave, I'd get horribly depressed. You witnessed that firsthand. So, yes. Your voice did affect me. But now, since Aoba destroyed your consciousness that was tied to your past, I think that power has gone dormant. We shouldn't have to worry about it anymore."

"And that," I asked, "What's that all about? How did he destroy me, or whatever it's called?"

"Aoba's special, too," he explained, "Where you have your voice with the intense euphoria, Aoba's is more along the lines of mind control. His voice can make people do whatever he wants. And for a while, according to him, it was a major problem. But along with that, he can also insert his conciousness into someone else's."

"Like Inception?" I figured.

"Pretty much," Noiz confirmed, "But it's a lot more delicate than that. One wrong move and Aoba can make sure someone slips into a coma and never comes out. And that person becomes a prisoner in their own mind."

"Yikes..." I thought back to my own prison. If Aoba would've rubbed it in my face that Noiz was dead or brought a wedding present for Yuki and me or had further abused me like Yuki did, I don't know what I'd do, "I guess we both have a downside to our power."

"It's all about how you use it," Noiz comforted, "The difference between Aoba's power and your power is that he can control it. You can't. But with him destroying you, it's probably either dormant like I said or it's completely gone."

"Even though I can't make you as happy as I did," I worried, "Will you still stay with me?"

"Of course," he promised, "What kind of question is that?"

"I have one more," I switched tangents, "And it's more important than yours."

"Shoot."

"Agatha," my voice broke, "Have you seen her?"

"Yeah," he nodded, "She's in pretty rough shape. Putting Agatha back together and fix her programming is going to take a while."

"We better get started then," I had to stay optimistic. If I had gone anywhere else, I wouldn't be able to handle myself. I couldn't lose Agatha. Not now. Not after all we've been through together.

"We will," Noiz swore, "But for now, I want you to get some rest, ok?"

"But..."

"Angel, you've been through a lot of heavy sedation," he pointed out, "You're in no shape to be putting an Allmate back together from scratch. Please. For me. Just a little decent sleep that wasn't drug induced."

"Fine," I pouted.

"Hey," Noiz pushed the hair out of my face, "I missed you..."

"I missed you, too," my heart spider webbed, "Do you think we could go back to the penthouse now?"

"Sure, Angel," he kissed my forehead, "We can go back to the penthouse."

At least we'd be going back together. No Morphine. No Yuki. No synthetic chemicals running through my body. And Noiz was alive. From the way I see things right now, everything's going to be ok…

 **A/N: Yay! *draws faces on her fingers* The gang's all here! And I managed to get Clear's Jellyfish Song involved! That was my first thought when I wrote Alpha was that Clear was going to counteract the DyE. I love the Jellyfish Song. It's one of my "bring me down from anxiety" songs. Fun fact. And can we take a minute to appreciate how adorable Clear is in this chapter? And the sassy comment Noiz made about him being an iPod on legs? I was pretty proud of myself for that line. Also for Angel's stubbornness. And Mink being a massive teddy bear. Because THAT'S THE WAY HE SHOULD'VE BEEN. *sigh* Forever weeping over a character's missed potential. See you next chapter! xx**


	26. His Name is Agatha

**A/N: Hi, guys! We had a guest comment last chapter! And by the looks of it, this comment sounds like me gushing about my babies. So, allow me to gush about my babies. Announcement to follow. Clear. If you don't love Clear, you're wrong. He is my squishy little angel and I love him. Alpha…I know Alpha looks just like Clear, but Clear is Clear. Alpha's like Clear, only without the best parts of Clear. He's not as much of my squishy baby like Clear.**

 **Now, Trip and Virus…I've explained a little about my love/hate relationship with these two. My anime preferences have taught me one thing. And that's the fact that I have a thing for brothers. I know, I know. Trip and Virus aren't brothers, but they might as well be. They're like a box of donuts when you're dieting. You know you shouldn't have them. You know they're bad for you. But that's not going to keep you from devouring the entire box. But as soon as you bite into the first one, you end up finding mold and throwing it away into the trash where they both belong.**

 **Mink…Mink…He is a massive teddy bear. He's on my list of people I think of when my mental stability comes into question. I think of those gigantic arms of his wrapped around me, that really sexy voice telling me that everything's going to be ok…I have really weird fantasies with Mink, though. I can't listen to Take Me to Church without thinking about Mink. And it's such a turn on. And when it comes on in the car when you're listening to music on your phone and your parents are in the front seat and you're in the back, biting your tongue so hard to suppress any sort of a moan and you're going through Chicago during rush hour traffic…It's not pleasant. Not that I'd know from personal experience or anything. Not at all. Nope. Happened to a friend of mine. What were we talking about again?**

 **Theo. My favorite little brother. We all know my thoughts on Theo. He is, in fact, a Disney prince. When I first saw that beautiful creature, that was my initial thought. I get pissed off when people draw smut with him. I saw a comic once on Tumblr that was Theo sitting naked on a bed upstairs at Aoba's house with Koujaku and he's all adorably blushy, telling Koujaku, the resident man whore, that it was his first time and to go easy on him. And of course, Koujaku has a volcanic bloody nose. So, they're obviously going at it. And Aoba, Noiz, and Tae-san are sitting downstairs, wondering what that banging noise was coming from upstairs. Then, they realize that they haven't seen Koujaku in a while and Theo was nowhere to be found. That was when I closed my web browser, put my computer in the corner, and went to bed. He is too pure and too precious for this world. DO NOT SEND ME THEO SMUT. I WILL BAN YOU. I LOVE HIS LITTLE BOY INNOCENCE AND HE'S GOING TO STAY THAT WAY. CLEAR, TOO. I CAN'T HANDLE MUCH CLEAR SMUT EITHER. HE IS ALSO TOO PURE AND TOO PRECIOUS FOR THIS WORLD. NO. NO. NO. CORNER. GO. NOW.**

 **Next character! I'm going to do two here. Because these are my characters. Chase? Angel's little cousin/practically her son. Chase is actually loosely based off someone in my life that I love as much as Angel loves Chase and that's my nephew. He's got his moments, but he's also eight. He's going to have his moments. But he, too, is Mimi's little buddy and I love him to pieces. He was the same way when he was Chase's age. And Chase is – what? – three? Yeah. There's not much difference between Chase and my nephew. But Travis? Travis isn't based off anyone. Travis is a mixture of what my friends have told me their tattoo artists are like with a little bit of my brother. I feel like I could ship Travis with another one of my OCs, Rhiannon from the Ouran High School Host Club fic…Do I smell a possible crossover? Smells like fresh air and whatever scent of Febreze was last used on my curtains. I have my windows open right now. A beautiful day, if I do say so myself. But I could ship that. Oh, hell yeah, I could ship that.**

 **And Noiz…When family members or people that I haven't seen in a long time ask me if I have a boyfriend, I always tell them that I have this amazing boyfriend named Wil. He's German. We met at a convention. He comes from a good family. His little brother's a sweetheart. I haven't met his parents, but there's a little bad blood there. He's kind of nerdy like me. A little bit of a Hot Topic trash baby like me. He's super, super smart. And we're stupid for each other. Works every time. If they ask where he is, he's on business for his brother. They'll never know…Now, I'm going to shut up with my gushing because this AN is already too long. So, thank you, ThatRandomDude0, for having me go on that tangent. I'll see you guys at the end.**

When I woke up, my entire body felt so stiff and sore. I could hardly move. It almost brought me back to the early days of my relationship with Yuki before I found out he was a dick. But that's a story for after the kids fall asleep. I needed a massage like nobody's business, though. I hoped to God Mink hadn't left yet. I'm sure he'd want us to be on the same flight. Slowly, I sat up in bed, every joint sounding like bubble wrap. But it hurt so good. I opened my mind to see an ethereal looking figure standing in front of the massive picture window in the master bedroom of the penthouse. Good. At least I was out of Morphine's hands.

"Noiz...?" I spoke meekly. Looked like Noiz. Stood like Noiz. Built like Noiz.

"Angel..." Didn't sound like Noiz, though, "Hey. Good morning."

"Hi, Theo," I smiled a little. Granted, he wasn't Noiz, but I couldn't help but love Theo, too, "Where's your brother?"

"My brother?" he sat on the bed with me, "Which one?"

"I'm pretty sure you only have one," I assumed.

"Wil?"

"No, Theo," I rolled my eyes, "Santa Claus."

"But Angel," Theo pointed out, "It's only October. What would Santa be doing here? He has to get ready for Christmas."

"Theo, where's Noiz?" I growled, already sick of his shenanigans.

"Watching the monitors," he chirped, "I can go get him for you if you want me to."

"Thank you," I curled back into the pillows, nursing my aching joints.

"But first," Theo pushed my hair out of my face, pulling me closer to him, "How are you feeling? You've been through quite a lot in the past seventy-two hours, from what I've been told."

"Better," I reported, "Much better."

"That's good," Theo jabbed his Coil in my wrist.

"Dude!" I squeaked, "What the hell, Theo? You couldn't have bothered to ask me? I swear, you're just like your brother."

"Doing a drug test," he justified, "Looks like whatever Morphine gave you is out of your system. I've been checking you while you were sleeping every hour on the hour."

So, that's why my arm was all bruised, "Fantastic."

"It is," Noiz came in, "Good morning."

"Morning," I lit up like a Christmas tree.

"Theo," he barked, "Out."

"But-" Theo tried to get defensive.

"I can take care of her from here," Noiz promised, "Go. Keep an eye out for anything having to do with Morphine. Movement, credit cards. I want to know if either Trip or Virus even sneeze."

"Ok," Theo put me down on Noiz's bed and left me alone with his brother.

And it didn't take very long before I was in Noiz's arms, "Hi."

"Hi," I nuzzled into his ribs. This. This is where I belonged. This is where I never wanted to leave. This was exactly where I was meant to be.

"So?" Noiz worried, "How is everything? You ok?"

"I'm fine, Noiz," I settled him, "I feel amazing."

"Scale from one to ten?" he checked me over.

"Perfect," I promised, wrapping my arms around him, "Absolutely perfect."

"Good," Noiz gave me a quick kiss, "Because I have some news for you."

"Oh?" he had my interest, "What's the news? Good or bad? Because I don't think I could really do much for bad news right now. It's all been bad news and I don't think my heart could take it."

"According to your last Coil scan," he pulled up the little display screen, "Your heart's fine. You could take the most massive bombshell right now and you'd be ok."

"News, Noiz," I sped him along, "What is it?"

"We're going back to Midorijima," he told, "It'll just be to tie up some loose ends. We'll probably be gone by the first week of November."

"But," my voice broke, "What about the life we have there?"

"Morphine ruined it," Noiz held me a little tighter, "Think of it as us starting over. The fresh start we so desperately need. We'll be away from our exes. Any problems we had in Midorijima. We'll be able to start anew together."

"San Diego?" I guessed.

"Yeah," he nodded, "Is that ok with you?"

"That's fine," I agreed, "But why can't we stay in Midorijima?"

"You don't think that'll be the first place they'll look for us?" Noiz asked, "Angel, until Morphine is taken out, we can't be in Midorijima too much. Just a safety precaution."

"Ok," I let out a heavy, depressed sigh. I liked living in Midorijima. I liked my cafes and my shops and my life I've made there. I didn't want to go.

"Speaking of Morphine," he cradled me against his chest, "I have to take you somewhere."

"Where?" I gave him a look.

"A specialist," he still kept me a little in the dark.

"You mean like a doctor?" I quivered. Noiz knew how much I hated doctors and hospitals of mostly every kind.

"A dermatologist, specifically," he tilted my head back, "We need to get this off your neck. And we'll see if he can do anything about the burn on your wrist, too. There has to be some sort of skin grafting he can do."

"Ok," I nodded, a bit more at ease, but still pretty shaky, "When are we leaving?"

"Your appointment's in half an hour," Noiz pulled me onto my feet.

"Fun," I grumbled.

"Hey," he kissed my forehead, "You want some help in the shower?"

I turned the brightest shade of red, "I don't know, Noiz..."

"This isn't about shower sex," he assured, "Been there, tried that. Unless there's a bath mat on the bottom of the tub or the floor of the shower, it ends up in a trip to the emergency room that you don't want to explain. Now, do you want my help or not?"

I thought it over for a minute, trying to get the image of Noiz and Aoba having shower sex that put one of them in the hospital. Or both. I didn't ask for the details. I didn't want the details. I didn't want my yaoi fantasies to star my boyfriend and his ex. Although, standing up was still kind of iffy for me, "Ok."

"Come on," Noiz led me into his bathroom and helped peel my clothes off. I really expected the first time he'd see me naked to be a lot sexier than this. There was that one time when we first decided to actually start dating, but I called it off. And he was ok with that.

Noiz got in the shower with me and turned on the water. Between him holding me up and against his bare chest and the hot water hitting my back, my body turned into jelly. I could get used to this. This was what I'd be dreaming of later tonight. My beautiful boyfriend taking care of me. His beautiful penthouse in a beautiful country. Everything was definitely coming up me. Granted, the circumstances and the hell I went through to get here could've been better, but I wasn't complaining.

As soon as he got me dressed, Noiz and I got in a cab and took it to this doctor's office. I've never heard anything about tattoo removal. It couldn't be too terribly bad, right? I'm sure Noiz wouldn't force me into anything that would cause me too much pain. Especially after what Morphine just put me through.

"Guten morgen, Fraulein," my doctor greeted me.

"Noiz," my stomach dropped, "I don't speak German."

"I know," he took my hand, "I can translate for you. But I'm pretty sure you know that much."

And the only reason I knew that was because of Noiz's delirious ass the morning after the first night we spent together. I merely smiled and nodded. But the doctor looked at me like I was still on drugs. No. That was last night. And the night before. But not because I wanted to!

"Meine freundin ist Amerikanerin. Sie spricht kein Deutsch," Noiz told him, "Könnten sie vielleicht Englisch sprechen?"

"Es tut mir leid," he dropped his gaze, "Mein Englisch ist nict sehr gut."

"What did he say?" I asked.

"I told him that you were American and don't speak any German," Noiz translated, "And if he could speak any English. He says he's sorry, but his English isn't very good."

"That's fine," I brushed it off, "That's what I have you for, right?"

"Exactly," his grip tightened. While Noiz and the doctor went back and forth in German, I spaced out at the wall. It's not like I could read any of the informational posters on the walls, but at least they had colorful pictures. It made me wonder what it was like for Noiz growing up here…Going by the horror stories he's told me, that's probably a question I should avoid like the plague. Could always ask Theo, though. I'm sure Theo would tell me anything I wanted to know.

"Angel," Noiz nudged me, "Did you even hear me?"

"What?" I came back to reality.

"I'll take that as a no," he rolled his eyes at me, "The doctor says the removal will take three sessions and he can start right now. Are you ready?"

"Yeah," I nodded, "The sooner we can get this off my neck, the better."

"He did ask if you had any gang affiliations, though," Noiz admitted, "You don't, right?"

"Aside from Ruff Rabbit," I smiled, "No. And definitely not Morphine. Screw them."

"That's my girl."

The doctor came back with some sort of machine and a restraint, "Um…What the hell is that for?"

"Just to keep your head still," he promised, "It's ok. You're fine."

"Alright," I let him strap my head down in a good position and listened to the humming of the machine as it warmed up. I was getting really bad Morphine flashbacks and there was nothing I could do about it. I was out cold when they did the tag art tattoo and all kinds of looped up on whatever drugs they wanted to give me, but PTSD was starting to kick in, "Noiz…Noiz!"

"Right here, Angel," he reassured me, "You're ok."

"Kann ich jetzt anfangen?" the doctor asked.

"Ja," Noiz allowed, "Mach weiter."

Noiz held my hand while the doctor began taking off my tattoo on my neck with his laser. This wasn't like the laser pointer I used to tease one of my friends in San Diego's cat with. Not at all. If this was karmic retribution for that, I'm sorry, Mochi. Forgive me.

"Ow…" I wept, "Ow…Ow! Noiz!"

"Ich kenne, liebchen," Noiz said with empathy in his voice, "Es wird in ordnung sein. Es wird bald vorbei sein."

"Noiz!" I snapped, "I don't like when I can't understand what you're saying!"

"Sorry," he apologized, "I've been in the mother country too long. But I know, sweetheart. I know. It'll be ok. It'll be over soon. You want me to call Mink? He could probably be more of a comfort to you."

"No," I shot him down, despite the fact that his heart was in the right place, "I'll be ok. It is why I have you, isn't it?"

"I try," Noiz kissed my forehead, keeping out of the doctor's way.

"By the way," I cringed through the pain, "Where was everyone this morning? When I woke up, it was just you, me, and Theo. They haven't left already, have they?"

"No," he shook his head, "They went sightseeing. Clear had never been outside of Japan. He got excited. They'll be back later."

"Noiz," I whined, "This hurts like a bitch."

"You'll be ok," he promised, "Only two more sessions and it'll be gone."

"I have to do this two more times?" I pouted, "I don't want to."

"Small price to pay for the result," Noiz's voice broke. I might have been physically suffering (minus the brief moment of 'Nam flashbacks), but Noiz was in almost as much misery as I was right now. He had to watch his girlfriend suffer and have absolutely no control over it.

"We're getting ice cream after this is all over with," I demanded, "And I'm gorging myself. And you're not judging me."

"I won't," he let it go.

And as soon as the doctor was done lasering my throat, Noiz came through on his promise. He and I went to the first ice cream shop we could find. And I got everything. Chocolate. Vanilla. Strawberry. Hazelnut. I was half tempted to try the lemon, but that couldn't have been good. But I drowned myself in ice cream to forget the twinges I could still feel on my neck.

"Hey, Angel," Noiz asked me, "How do you like it here?"

"I love it," I put my spoon down after my fifth bowl, "Minus my experience with Trip and Virus, Germany has been very good to me. I may actually start learning German."

"Why?" he gave me a look, "You have me to translate for you. Or Theo, if I'm not here."

"I know," I licked the melted ice cream off my pinky, "But what if I want to be by myself and I want to talk to someone who doesn't know any English? Then, I'm screwed."

"In that case," Noiz went on, "Would you want to stay here?"

"I wouldn't have a single problem with that," I beamed, "Why?"

"Just an option," he shrugged, "In case you ever want to leave San Diego while we're living there. We can always come back here."

"I like that," I agreed, "We can come back here any time."

"Does that mean when I take business trips now," Noiz figured, "I'm going to have to take you with me?"

"Maybe…"

"By the way," he switched tangents, "I have a surprise for you."

"For me?" I wondered, "What is it?"

"Hold on," he opened up his Coil, screwing around on the display in front of him, "Agatha? Can you hear me?"

"What?" my heart sank to my toes. I could already feel tears welling up in my eyes.

"Noiz...?" a groggy little voice spoke, "Where am I?"

"Aggie?" my voice broke.

"Angel!" she sang out, "Where are you? Why can't I see you? Why can't I see anything?"

"I uploaded your consciousness to my Coil," Noiz explained, "You've pretty much become an AI at this point. Your body's still in shambles, though. I'll be able to reunite the two of you soon. I did some tinkering last night. Pulled an all-nighter to get this far. I'm sorry if this is a little uncomfortable for you. I had to keep your brain working somehow. This is just a temporary situation. You'll be able to hear anything we say, but you won't be able to feel or see anything quite yet. Not until I put you back in your body."

"Aggie..." I shook, "Are you ok?"

"Don't worry about me," she snapped, "What about you? Are you ok?"

"I'm not the one with my body in pieces back at the penthouse," I argued, "Now, I'm going to ask you again. Are you ok?"

"I'm having a weird out of body experience," Agatha giggled at her own joke, "But I'm pretty sure I'll be fine. Living in Noiz's Coil won't kill me. And this is only a temporary situation, right, Noiz?"

"Right," he nodded, "You'll be safe and sound in there. Nobody can hack my Coil."

"I thought you said nothing was unhackable," I reminded him.

"Trust me," Noiz smirked, "Nobody can hack my Coil. I have so many firewalls in this thing that they'd get tired and give up before they even got close. My Coil and Clear's brain are almost the same."

"Almost?"

"If I made them identical," he explained, "then if by some act of God someone hacked Clear or my Coil, they'd be able to get into one or the other. And that wouldn't be good for anyone. My databases are too important for someone else to get them. Anyone I've ever met in my life is in my database. Background checks, records. Anything I want to know."

"Why?" I worried, "Why would you do that?"

"Saves me time," he shrugged, "If someone is temporary, then I don't waste any of my time getting to know them. Besides, paranoia is a hell of a problem."

If hearing Agatha's voice again wasn't enough to make my heart ache, hearing Noiz's reasoning for his database would be the icing on the cake, "Did you think I was temporary?"

"Angel," Noiz took my hand.

"No," I pulled hit away, "Answer me. Did you think I was temporary? Did you think I was going to leave right away?"

"Honestly?" he sighed, "Yeah. I did. But not for what you think. I thought that if something as amazing as you was about to waltz into my life with any sort of permanence, something was bound to take it away from me as soon as possible. In a way, I was sort of right."

"Noiz," I spoke softly, "Nothing is taking me away from you. Not Morphine. Not anything. I never want to hear that come out of your mouth again. And if I ever do, I'm beating the hell out of you. I am not going anywhere. Do we understand each other?"

My boyfriend stared into me in complete shock, "Ok. I understand."

"Good," I took his hand, "Now, Agatha, really. How are you doing?"

"I'm fine," she assured, "You?"

"Peachy."

Aside from my head being played with by Morphine and Aoba having to go in to clean things up, I was fine. Noiz wasn't dead. I wasn't married to Yuki. I was a third of the way done with my tattoo removal. I had all my friends here. Even better, I had my favorite little pain in the ass back.

 **A/N: That's right, guys! Agatha's alive! She's ok! For the most part. Making dad jokes. But she'll get her body back. I mean, it'll cost an arm and a leg to do it, but… *badumtss* Speaking of horrible jokes. Dear Fullmetal fans that understood that, I'm sorry. Please love me. We make horrible jokes to cope with the horribleness that happens. But! Back to the story. Next week, we'll be back in Midorijima to get affairs in order. And we'll be checking up on my little Beanie Baby. So, as always. See you next chapter! xx**


	27. His Name is Leader

My next few days in Berlin could've been better. I hated having to look over my shoulder, hoping to God that Trip and Virus weren't waiting for me around the corner. Although, I found a great comfort in the fact that I was never alone. Either Noiz and I would go out for the night or Clear, Koujaku, and Aoba would bring me along on their misadventures. Even Mink came with me to my last laser removal appointment. And I really don't think I could've done it without him. The laser nearly made me pass out. The pain had me in tears, but between Noiz and Mink, I managed to keep my head.

But before I new it, we were all back home where we belonged. Midorijima welcomed me back like an old friend and I missed it so much. I know I wasn't going to be here long, but still. It was going to suck something awful when Noiz and I leave. However, I still had some things to take care of before we left for San Diego. I put in my resignation in at the market, got rid of my apartment, moved what I needed to into my storage unit. All I had left to do was pack.

I had plenty of time to do that. I deserved a break. And it was getting to be that time of day again. Out of everything on my to-do list, this was probably the highest of priority. I stood outside the high school, watching all the young children come out looking tired and pissed off. Can't say I missed that. I was waiting for one in particular. One familiar face that still looked tired, but not pissed off. More like he had been sleep deprived for a solid week. Like he woke up from a three hour nap that was only intended to be half an hour and felt like he was hit by a bus. And some douchebags were screwing with him. I couldn't stand idly by and watch.

I pulled my shirt down a little, showing a teeny bit of cleavage and shook my hair out, making myself look as hot as humanly possible. The boys' eyes widened a little bit as I wrapped my arm around their victim, kissing his cheek, "Hi, sweetie."

He turned around and threw himself into my embrace, "Angel!"

I whispered into my favorite team member's ear, "Just go with me here."

"Ok..."

I gave Bolt the sweetest, most innocent kiss, enough to make it look like we could've possibly been dating, "I missed you."

"I missed you, too," he blinked the stars out of his eyes.

"Hey," one of the guys screwing with Bolt winked at me, "Who's this, Zane? Your mom?"

"No way," the other figured, undressing me with his eyes, "She's too hot to be Zane's mom. But she's too hot to be Zane's anything."

"Well," I held Bolt against my hip, "He does call me Mommy from time to time. But that's only in the confines of my bedroom. Come on, baby. We should get going."

"Ok..." Bolt was still recovering from our kiss.

"Wait a minute!" Douchebag stopped me, "Who are you?"

"I'd show you my team mark," I smirked, pulling up my sleeve, "But it was kind of burned off with a lighter by Morphine."

"Morphine?"

"Who are you with?"

"Ruff Rabbit," I told, "But I also have a few teams in my back pocket."

"Which ones...?"

"Well," I bit my lip, "The leader of Benishigure adores me. The leader of Ruff Rabbit loves me to death. The former leader of Scratch is like an older brother to me. And the leader of Ruff Rabbit knows the leader of Dry Juice. I also survived being held captive by Morphine. So, no. I'm not to be messed with. And neither is he. Now, if you boys don't mind, my boyfriend and I have a thing to do."

Without another word, I turned on my heel with Bolt's hand in mine and we left those two mouth breathing idiots behind. I forgot how much fun that was. I hadn't done anything like that since Noiz had gone to Germany and I was left with those two morons that thought they joined Ruff Rabbit. Now, I was feeling like a good green tea for nostalgic purposes, so I brought Bolt into a café down the street.

"Um, Angel..." Bolt gave me a look, "Are you really my girlfriend?"

"No," I assured, "I'm still with Noiz. That's not changing for a while."

"Sorry," he apologized, chuckling off his embarrassment, "My memory's still a little fuzzy. I've been in and out of it since I woke up on Noiz's futon."

"How you feeling?" I took his hands.

"I've been better," Bolt reported, "What about you? You kind of fell off the face of the Earth for a while. What was that all about?"

"I was in Germany," I explained, "Noiz wanted me away from Morphine, but I wasn't lying when I told them I survived Morphine. They got to me, too. And if you ever need someone to talk to about what they did to you, let me know. We can support group this out."

"I will," he smiled a little, "I'm just glad you're home again, Angel."

"Me, too," I mirrored him, but the good feeling didn't last long as reality began to set in, "We'll be leaving soon, though."

"What?" I should've shot him in the knee. That would've been kinder, "Why? You just got back. Why do you have to leave again?"

"Midorijima isn't safe for me anymore, Bolt," my voice broke a bit, "Morphine wasn't after Noiz. Morphine wasn't after you. Morphine is after me for reasons I'm keeping to myself. So, Noiz is going to keep watch for them in the US. Aoba, his ex, is going to keep watch for them around here. Don't worry. You'll be fine. They don't really have use for you."

"Thanks, Angel," Bolt blew bubbles in his drink.

"No," I assured, "You want to be useless to Morphine. That means they'll leave you alone. You should be ok."

"Does that mean Noiz is going with you?" he asked.

"Yeah," I nodded, "He and I are moving back to my hometown. So, if you're ever in San Diego, look us up. We'll probably be under a new name, though. Theo hasn't really gotten back to us on our new documentation yet."

"But what about-"

Ring, ring.

"Hold on a sec," I stopped him, answering my Coil, "Hi, baby. What's up?"

"Where are you?" Noiz asked.

"I'm sitting in a café with Bolt," I played with my straw, "Why?"

"On our way."

Click.

"Well…" I hung up, "I guess Noiz is coming."

"Doesn't even bother to say goodbye," Bolt teased, "And why are you with him?"

"Because I don't want to be without him," I sighed out, "Been there, done that. Never want to be there again. I really do love him, Bolt. I've built him back up at his worst and he's saved me from two very twisted assholes. You don't get to see the side of Noiz that made me fall in love with him. You may have, but you probably don't remember much."

"What do you mean?"

"When you were with Morphine," I told, "Noiz was the one to find you. He said you were somewhere in the warehouse district. He brought you back to his place, he called your mom to let you know you were ok. He got your neck tattoo taken care of."

"I had a neck tattoo?" Bolt wondered.

"Do you really not remember anything from your time with Morphine?" I worried.

"Not a thing," he shook his head, "But it does feel like someone ran my brain through a blender."

"We'll get through it," I promised, "I'll make sure to give you my new number before we leave in case you need anything."

"And you'll let me know your new information?" he hoped.

"Of course," I swore, "In Germany, my name was Mika. When I was still living in San Diego, I cosplayed under the name Ms. Enigma. When I moved here, I became TenshiUsagiChan. So many identities, but at the end of the day, I'm still just Angel."

"You've never been just Angel," my real boyfriend came up behind me, kissing the top of my head, "You're my angel."

"Look at you, trying to be clever," I cranked my neck back, getting a more proper kiss, "Hi, baby."

"Hey, boss," Bolt waved.

"That was quick," I pointed out, "Were you out and about anyway?"

"I was just coming back from the junk shop," Noiz sat with us, "I needed to talk with Bolt anyway."

"Me?" Bolt perked up, "What about me?"

"Checking in," Noiz looked him over, "You feeling ok? How's your head?"

"Whatever Tae-san gave me," Bolt filled him in, "I've been able to function. So, what did you need to talk to me about?"

"Angel and I are leaving Midorijima," Noiz explained.

"Yeah," Bolt nodded, "Angel told me. And I know. Morphine won't come after me anymore."

"Aside from that," he went on, "I'm not going to be around anymore to keep Ruff Rabbit together. I've built one hell of an empire with that team. Once I leave, they're going to need a leader. And I want to give that job to the third strongest player on the team."

"Who's the first and second?" Bolt gave him a look.

"Angel's the first, I'm the second," Noiz made me blush, "And you, Bolt, are the third. I want you to take over Ruff Rabbit for me."

Bolt's face went completely blank and the color drained, "What…?"

"Uh, Noiz," I worried, "I think you might have broken him. Bolt? You still with us, sweetie?"

"You…" he could barely speak, "You really want me to take over…for you? Noiz, I can't. There's no way the guys are going to accept me as their leader."

"They will if I tell them to," Noiz put his foot down, "Don't worry about the others. I can get them to come around. And if any of them get out of line, you have the power to kick them off the team. You've seen me do that firsthand."

"But Yuki was a jerk," Bolt remembered, "He had it coming."

"And now," Noiz continued, "If anyone else has it coming, you can tell them to leave."

"I don't know, Noiz…"

"You'll be great, Bolt," I encouraged. Maybe if he won't listen to Noiz, he'll listen to me, "The guys will learn to listen to you. If they don't, that's when you start booting people. You shall be a kind and just leader."

"Ruff Rabbit was, is, and always will be my baby," Noiz stole a drink of my tea, "I wouldn't be giving it to you if I didn't think you could handle it. You don't realize it, but I've been grooming you to take over anyway. Ever since you joined. I had to have seen something in you. That's not easy for me to do. Take my baby and make it thrive, Bolt. Don't let Ruff Rabbit die just because I can't be there to take care of it."

"Alright," Bolt caved, getting a little shaky, "I'll take it. I will continue the legacy you're leaving behind."

"Thank you," he opened his pocket, "And by the way, Angel, I have someone that wants to see you. I've been busy all afternoon."

"Finally," a familiar little voice whined, "Don't get me wrong, Noiz. Your pocket's pretty comfortable, but it was starting to get a little cramped in there."

"Aggie!" I squealed, taking my little panda out, holding her tight against my chest.

"I just got put back together, Angel," Agatha winced, "Do you mind not trying to break me again?"

"Sorry," I loosened my grip, "How's it feel to be out of Noiz's Coil?"

"Liberating," she stretched her neck out and nuzzled into mine, "But it's good to see you in one piece again."

"You, too," I giggled darkly, "Noiz, did you give her anything special?"

"I swapped out her analog panel with a touchscreen, so her maintenance will be easier for me to do," Noiz ran me through everything, "But all in all, she's still the same little pain in the ass we know and love."

"Hey!" Agatha snapped, "Just because you overhauled me doesn't mean I won't still bite you."

"Agatha," I scolded, "Noiz essentially saved your life. You could stand to be a little grateful."

"I am," she pouted, "But I'm still not calling him Dad."

And there she was. There was my Agatha. There was my little panda back to normal. And I had Noiz to thank for that. She took a while to get her back, but once we did…I never wanted to see this little sweetheart broken again.

 **A/N: Hi, guys. I have a little bit of news to tell you. I don't want you to get mad at me, but I'm going to be taking hiatus for November. For those that aren't writers and just come here to have a good time, November is NaNoWriMo season. NaNoWriMo is National Novel Writing Month. We take all of November to write a novel. It's fifty thousand words in thirty days. It's something very near and dear to my heart. It's writers' Christmas. It's my favorite time of the year. I've participated for the past two years and won both times. I highly, highly encourage you to take the challenge. It can be done! And if you post your project online, let me know and I'll give it a read over. But that means I won't be updating until December. When, I'm not sure. Because the 30** **th** **of November is on a Wednesday. So, I might be updating the following Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. But after spending an entire month on one project (which, I haven't done in a long time), I may be a little burned out. I don't know. I'm sure I'll figure it out eventually. We'll see. See you next chapter! xx**


	28. SPECIAL: Happy Halloween

**A/N: Surprise! Hi, guys! This is kind of a crack chapter. With NaNoWriMo starting tomorrow and today being Halloween, I thought I'd give you a special. And this idea had been in the recesses of my brain for two weeks now. It will be adorable. It will be a bit fluffy. It will be probably the most favorite of my Dramatical Murder spewings. Including "About Time". But NOW I'll be on hiatus. I'll see you at the end for book club, k?**

After all this Morphine craziness, it was kind of nice to have a night with just Noiz and me at his place. We didn't have anyone to deal with. I had ordered Chinese food. He laid on the couch with his head in my lap while I drew on my tablet and got some work done with my little panda curled up on my shoulder. Everything was nice for a change.

Designing TenshiUsagiChan's actual battle armor was kind of a pain in my ass, though. I wanted to base it off Agatha's online mode, but on the same token, I wanted to do a complete redesign. And I couldn't make up my mind. So, that project was put aside and I worked on my side project that Noiz didn't know about.

I had two months to finish what I had planned for his Christmas present. He'd kill me if he knew I wasn't working on the manga. That thing that I got to quit my job for. Other than the fact that Noiz could support the two of us. I was in the process of designing a Ruff Rabbit bunny girl cosplay. If that wasn't enough to get Noiz hot and bothered, nothing else would work. I have to change my appearance before we leave Midorijima again anyway. Why not replace the pink with a minty shade of green? Maybe with some light pastel blue in it, too? Or some dark blue? I'd have to run it by Koujaku and see what he thought.

All of a sudden, a vicious pounding thundered at our door. And that was enough for Noiz to pause his game, "What was that?"

"Someone at the door," I settled him as the pounding continued.

"Noiz! Angel! Let me in!"

Wait a minute...That was Clear...

"I got it," I picked Noiz's head off my lap and opened the door, "Clear, hi. What's wrong?"

"Monsters!" he caught his breath, "There are monsters loose all over Midorijima! Tiny monsters! We have to do something!"

"Noiz..." I thought it over, "What's the date today?"

"The thirty-first," he barked back at me.

"Clear," I shook my head, giggling at his naivety, "It's Halloween."

"Halloween?" Clear gave me a look, "What's that?"

"Oh, honey," I pitied, "Have you never been trick-or-treating?"

"I don't think so..."

"Come in," I yanked on his arm, "We need to have a little talk."

"But what about the monsters?" he squeaked.

"It's not real, sweetie," I assured, "Those are little kids in costumes."

"Why would they go around scaring people like that?" Clear started to settle down a bit.

"Every year," I explained, "People get dressed up and go trick-or-treating. That's when you go from house to house, knock on the door, and say trick-or-treat. Then, whoever lives there will give you candy and you repeat the process with the next house. Understand?"

"This sounds like fun!" he perked up about the whole idea, "Angel, will you go with me?"

"I don't know if you could, Clear," I bit my lip, "Trick-or-treating is mostly for kids. Adults use it as an excuse to wear as little clothing as possible and get drunk beyond all recollection."

"Come on, Angel," Clear pouted, "It's not my fault I was assembled as an adult."

I gave it a thought for a moment or two, "Alright. I'll take you trick-or-treating."

"Really?" he lit up, "Yay!"

"Noiz?" I offered, "You want in?"

"I've never gone either," Noiz unpaused his game, "Wasn't allowed to. Theo always split his candy with me, though. I'll have to pass."

"Come on," I begged, "I bet it'll be fun."

"I'm not taking Clear trick-or-treating," he rolled his eyes, "You two go have fun."

"Wait a minute, Angel," Clear stopped me, "I don't have a costume."

"And I'm sure if we were to go to a shop right now," I sighed, "All they have left is slutty cat and pimp."

"I'm sure you have something in your closet for him," Noiz assumed, "Or he could be the empty child and you could be his mummy."

"Not really," I cringed, "Most of my cosplays are intended for me. They're not meant for a guy. And he's not being the empty child!"

I was starting to regret getting Noiz into Doctor Who now.

"I don't mind," Clear insisted, "Anything is fine."

"Alright," I took him by the hand and brought him into the guest room of Noiz's apartment. All of my cosplays were making the move to San Diego, so I had set up shop there. All of my racks, all of my mannequins, all of my dress forms, my sewing machine. Everything was neatly organized and situated right where they should be. By genre, by color, by series, if I had a particular character I was doing. I had my cosplay closet running like a well-oiled…Well…Like Clear, "Take your pick."

"Wow, Angel," Clear marveled, "You made all of these?"

"Yep," I thumbed through the racks, "In this room is eight years of blood, sweat, tears, and colorful obscenities. I was barely in high school when I started."

"And you've worn all of these?" he asked.

"I've won contests in some of them," I told, "But everything in this room has been on me at one point or another. Don't judge me with some of them, though. When I first moved to San Diego, things were kind of rough for a while. I had to sell some prints to some less than savory websites, do the occasional livestream. Hopefully, those are buried in the bowels of the internet."

"Found them!" Noiz called out. I wanted to hit him, but I just shook my head and let it slide.

"I won't judge," Clear pulled a uniform dress from the rack, "What do you think of this one?"

"That one," my heart melted. Even though I had the strongest desires to use his nuts as a speed bag right now, I couldn't if I tried, "The last time I wore that one was at one o'clock in the morning for Noiz when he was painfully depressed."

"Does that mean I can't wear it?"

"Not that you can't," I took the hanger from him, "It's that you shouldn't."

"How about this one?" Clear had found all of my animal costumes. Like I said. Times were tough. Before I had started with Mink. He'd kill me if he knew I was a cam girl. Out of everything he could've picked, Clear had one that was a baby's first Halloween staple. And there was absolutely no way in hell I was saying no to it.

"Clear," I awed, "You would make the most adorable bumblebee. I approve."

"Wonderful!" he chirped, "Are you going to wear a costume, too?"

"Of course," I went back to my search, "Halloween is either a cosplayer's day off or a cosplayer's Christmas. I'm not passing this up."

"Are you sure I can be the bumblebee?" Clear asked.

"Positive," I assured, remembering some of the things that costume has seen. I'm just glad that it was a one-way video feed, "Now, if you want to do this right, you should take off your gas mask."

"But…" he hesitated.

"Clear," I took his trembling hands, "It's ok. Remember? You have an adorable face. You don't have to hide it away. The fact that you do is almost criminal. I'll be right here every step of the way. It'll be ok."

"Ok," I could tell he wanted to do this as much as a root canal, "I can't do it, Angel. You do it."

"Are you sure?" I worried.

"Please," he begged.

"Alright," I undid the straps carefully and pulled Clear's gas mask off his face, "There. Cute as a button."

"My face is still here?"

I kissed Clear's little cheek, "All there. Eyes, nose, lips. Nothing's missing."

"Ok," he smiled, "Now, we have to find a costume for you."

"Easy," I stuck my head out the door, "Noiz! Any requests?"

"I've already downloaded your old livestreams," he yelled back, "I'm good for the night."

"Is that what you're going to be doing while we're gone?" I whined, "Going through my livestreams and my resume as a cam girl?"

"Pretty much."

"Here," Clear grabbed a costume for me, "I think you'd look cute in this one."

Magical girl. Perfect. A staple for the cons. A staple for the livestreams. And I looked cuter than hell in it. But out of all my costumes, that was the one that was the most effort to put on and put together. I decided with a purple color palette. It's not that I didn't have one in every color. I was just kind of feeling purple. I probably should've went with yellow to match with Clear, but this would do.

"Well?" I walked out of the bathroom, looking like I fought evil by moonlight and won love by daylight, "How do I look?"

"Like March of 2009," Noiz teased.

"Thanks," I rolled my eyes, "Agatha, can you do me a favor and fry Noiz's hard drive?"

"Are you sure?" Agatha asked.

"Do you realize the amount of data on my hard drive?" Noiz pointed out, "My databases. My tabs on Trip and Virus. Our identities. Frying my hard drive would be very detrimental to us, Angel. Probably shouldn't do that."

"Thanks, Captain Hindsight," I grumbled.

"No problem, Major Sarcasm," he gave me a little salute.

"I hate you."

"I hate you, too," Noiz pulled me down to the couch, kissing me sweetly, thinking that was going to make everything ok. And I hated when he was right.

"We'll be back in an hour or two," I told him, "That should be enough time to get through a few streams."

"I'm glad I have your blessing now," Noiz flipped through his newly created playlist, "I wonder why this didn't come up when I did your background check."

"I didn't use my real name," I scoffed, "I know better. So my creepier, stalker, hacker fans couldn't hunt me down, find out where I lived, my phone number, things of the like."

"Does that make me one of your creepy, stalker, hacker fans?" he wondered.

"You're my boyfriend, dumbass," I reminded him, "You don't count. Now, I'm going to take the baby trick-or-treating. Do you need anything while we're out?"

"Not that I know of," Noiz shrugged, "If I think of something, I'll give you a call."

"Ok," I looked over in the corner, "Aggie? You want to come, too?"

"I'm kind of tired, Angel," my little panda let out a big yawn, "I think I'm going to stay here and watch your cam girl archives with Noiz."

"Suit yourself," I took Clear's hand, "Shall we?"

"Ok!" I had never seen Clear so excited. Not even when we took him to a petting zoo in Berlin and he befriended a llama. And I thought he was going to pass out, "Where should we go first, Angel?"

"There are rules that come along with trick-or-treating," I stopped him, "We're not going to houses of people we don't know. Those are the people that end up giving us ecstasy and acid and PCP. And as much fun as you probably are on hallucinogens, we're not going to risk it. We can go to Mink's hotel room. We can go to Aoba and Koujaku's. We can go to some businesses around the area. I have a friend we can go to. And we're going to stay in well-lit areas. You know the rest, right? Stranger danger? Don't get into anyone's car?"

"I know," he nodded, "Let's go get some candy!"

I loved Clear. He was such a child, but still in the body of an adult. I started thinking of him like my own son. Besides, Halloween had gotten kind of hard for me when left Royalton after my aunt died. I had the pleasure of taking Chase trick-or-treating the first time last year. As he got older, he and I started clicking over Halloween and all the costumes I'd always make for him. No other kid went as all the Avengers in one costume. But Chase did. Because his cousin loved him and could set him up.

Our first stop was just down the block to Mink's hotel. Noiz insisted that he'd put him up somewhere nice, but Mink shot him down. So, he stayed a little bit outside the warehouse district. He said it felt more like home. Noiz wasn't going to fight him. I'm sure Noiz could hold his own in a fight, but not against Mink. Mink would tear his ass to shreds. Clear knocked on Mink's door.

"What?" he thundered from the other side.

"Trick-or-treat!" Clear called out, "Did I do good?"

"Yes," I giggled a little.

Mink opened his door and glanced Clear over, "What the hell are you doing, Clear?"

"I'm a bumblebee!" he beamed.

"You're a damn moron," Mink shook his head, "Angel, why?"

"He had never been trick-or-treating," I explained, "I felt bad for him. And he thought the monsters were real."

"Didn't you say he'd have candy?" Clear wondered, "Why don't I have any candy?"

"I don't have any candy, you dumbass," Mink shot him down, "You were better off staying home tonight."

"Angel!" Clear whined, "Mink's being mean!"

"Come on, Mink," I settled, "You don't have anything to give him?"

"No," he groaned, "I should be giving him a stack of business cards for psychiatric professionals. Have you two been anywhere else?"

"No."

"Good," Mink sighed out, "Turn around and go home."

"I can't," I kept positive, "I told Clear I was going to take him trick-or-treating and I'll be damned if I go back on that."

"Suit yourselves," he caved, "I don't have any candy, Clear. Go beg elsewhere."

Mink shut his door and Clear and I were off to our next house. I hated to see him so discouraged. I knew Mink's feelings on Halloween. He took it as a hedonistic holiday and refused to participate, but once Clear started heading toward the warehouse district, there was no stopping him. I couldn't let Mink ruin what was essentially Clear's first Halloween.

"Clear?" I checked on him, "You ok, sweetie?"

"Mink was right," he shuffled his feet, "I don't know why I got so excited about this."

"No, no," I picked his head back up, "Don't let what Mink say get to you. Tell you what. I'm sure we'll do better at the next house. Let's go see Koujaku and Aoba, ok? I can almost guarantee they have candy."

"Fine…" Clear still looked a bit disappointed, but at least he wasn't afraid of the "monsters" anymore. We could roam Midorijima without him being scared.

"Hey, Clear," I stopped him outside a café, "I'm going to go to the bathroom. I'll be right back, ok?"

"Ok," he sat at an empty table and waited for me.

Dammit, Mink. You just had to push your brutal cynicism on someone as sweet and pure and innocent as Clear. I knew you were bad. Like borderline into Noiz's cynical territory. But all he wanted was a cute costume and some candy. Was that too much? I opened up my Coil and scrolled through my contacts.

"Angel?" a voice answered, "Hi. Is everything ok?"

"Not really," I peeked over at Clear, looking like he just lost his best friend. Impossible, considering I was talking to his best friend, "Please tell me you and Koujaku are giving candy for Halloween tonight."

"Yeah," Aoba confirmed, "Why?"

"Clear has never gone trick-or-treating before," I told, "So, me being the good samaritan that I am, decided to take him."

"That was nice of you," Aoba awed.

"But here's the thing," I went on, "I made the mistake of taking him to Min's first. Of course, he pretty much shattered Clear's hopes and dreams and he's been down ever since. I'm going to bring him by soon. Maybe you could cheer him up a little."

"Sure," he agreed, "It's hard to see someone like Clear so sad."

"You're telling me," I sighed, "I have to go. Clear thinks I had to pee. We'll be there soon."

"We'll be waiting."

Click.

The temperature outside had dropped a bit and I was regretting not bringing any sort of a jacket. Instead, I got two cups of grean tea and brought one to the little bumblebee waiting for me outside, "Here, honey. I brought you something to keep you warm."

"Thank you," Clear took his cup, "I think I'm just going to call it a night. I appreciate the effort, Angel, but I don't think this is going to work."

"Of course it will," I promised, "Come on, Clear. We'll go to Aoba and Koujaku's, ok? Sound good?"

"I guess we could go see Master and Koujaku," Clear let out a heavy, depressed sigh.

"No," I stopped him, "I want to see a smile on your face, Clear. Just because Mink is a cynic doesn't mean he's ruining tonight. Besides, we have two other houses to hit. They won't give candy to a sad trick-or-treater."

Clear faked a little smile for me and the two of us went on our way. I was going to have words with Mink later about crushing my little bumblebee's spirits, but for now, we had a mission. We walked up Koujaku's steps and stood at the door. As Clear reached for the door handle, I slapped his hand away.

"Ouch," he winced, "What was that for?"

"Knock on the door," I told him.

"But it's Master and Koujaku's place," he pointed out, "I don't have to knock."

"Just trust me," I assured, "Knock on the door. Say trick or treat."

"Angel..."

"Clear," I glared through him, "Trust me."

"Fine..." he knocked on the door like I told him to and yelled, "Trick or treat!"

"Hi, Clear," Aoba opened the door and threw a handful of candy in his bag, "I didn't know you were trick-or-treating this year."

"Angel told me all about it," Clear's eyes started to brighten a bit, "And it sounded like fun. Until Mink rained on the parade."

"It's a religious thing," I clarified, "Mink's always seen Halloween as a hedonistic, sacrilegious thing. Originally, it was intended to raise spirits from the dead and cause Hell on Earth. But now, it's costumes and candy and harmless fun. Some people don't see it as that, though. Mink being one of them."

"It's really not you, Clear," Koujaku joined us, "It's him."

"Thank you, Koujaku," he smiled honestly, "Does this mean we can keep going for more candy, Angel?"

"I'll go as long as you want," I swore.

"Yay!" There he was. There was the Clear I knew and loved.

"You know, Clear," Aoba suggested, "I'm sure Grams is giving out candy this year. I'm not sure if you two had plans to go anywhere else."

"Just a friend of mine's house," I shrugged.

"We can go see Tae-san, too!" Clear squeaked.

"Ok," I allowed, trying to settle him down a bit, "We should get going then."

"Yay!" he bolted down the stairs.

"Can't tell it's his first time," Koujaku chuckled as I threw my arms around his boyfriend, "Wow, Angel. What's that all about?"

"Thank you, Aoba," I buried my face in his shoulder.

"You're welcome," he kissed my forehead, "I've never had a magical girl in my arms before."

"You've probably never had a girl in your arms before, magical or otherwise," I teased.

"No," Aoba shook his head, "Once or twice."

"Really?" I gave him a look.

"It's true," Koujaku confirmed, "I've seen it with my own two eyes. Although, you are his first magical girl. And you are very adorable."

"Thank you," I blushed.

"When you're done flirting with my boyfriend," Aoba giggled, "Go before Clear ends up halfway to mainland."

I ran after Clear and we continued on our route. The little monsters didn't scare him anymore. He had a lollipop in his mouth. Clear was happy as a clam. And I would be damned if I was going to let anyone else ruin this for him. In a strange way, I really did care for him like he was my own son. Clear would never ever replace my little peanut, but he was my Chase away from Chase. I was waiting patiently for the day when Clear slips up and accidentally calls me Mom. Regardless, it was off to the next house!

Kyu's place was just down the road from Aoba and Koujaku's building. And if she knew that, she'd piss herself. But instead, I let Clear ring her doorbell, his eyes full of excitement. I wasn't all that surprised at Kyu's choice of costume. She had been a sexy cop for three years in a row and her fiancé was her prisoner. Whatever floated their boat, I guess.

"Trick or treat!" Clear sang out.

"Aren't you adorable!" Kyu awed over him, "Angel, is he yours?"

That's right. Kyu didn't know what Noiz looked like. She didn't even know his name. For all she knew, Clear was my boyfriend, "My what?"

"Is this the guy you moved in with?" she wondered.

"No," I shook my head, "This is Clear. Clear, this is Kyu."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," he bowed to her.

"He's such a cutie!" Kyu threw some candy in Clear's bag, "So, is he the boyfriend's special little brother or something?"

"He's a friend of mine," I clarified, "He's not special or anything."

"I'm not special?" Clear almost burst into tears.

"Of course you are, Clear," I assured, "Just not in the way we're talking."

"Hey, babe!" Kyu's fiancé called out from inside, "Is the pizza guy here yet?"

"Not yet!" she yelled back, "I'd love to stay and chat, but we need to finish setting up for tonight. If you want, you and this little cutie are more than welcome to come back. And your boyfriend, too."

"He doesn't really do parties," I brushed her off. And to tell the truth, I didn't really like them much either. Especially Kyu's parties. She invited me to her bachelorette party, but I knew it was just going to be everything dick shaped and a lot of liquor. I didn't feel like drinking, "And I need to be getting this one home soon anyway."

"Oh, boo," Kyu whined, "You're no fun. We better be doing something before you leave Midorijima."

"I'm sure we will." In a million years. I loved Kyu. But Kyu and a party? I wasn't taking care of her drunk ass. No, thank you.

Clear and I left Kyu's and started heading back toward home. Until we took a sharp right into an alleyway and ran through the Old Residential District to a traditional two story house with some brick in the front and the name Seragaki on the mailbox. Before I could stop him, Clear knocked on the front door with the utmost enthusiasm.

"WHAT?!" an angry, older woman shouted at him.

"Trick or treat!"

"Oh," she settled down, "Clear. It's only you. Why are you trick-or-treating? And who are you?"

"This is Angel," Clear introduced me, "She's Noiz's girlfriend."

"Girlfriend?" the woman looked me over, "Noiz? We're talking about the same, bratty, pain in the ass that was dating Aoba, right?"

"Sounds like Noiz," I giggled, trying to break the tension.

"Angel, this is Tae-san," Clear nudged me, "She's Aoba's grandmother. She's the best in all of Midorijima."

"Take the lip prints off my ass, Clear," Tae-san shot a glare at him, "It's nice to meet you, Angel. Even though you are dating Noiz. Good luck."

"Thank you?" I wasn't really sure what to make of that, "Aoba's actually kind of given us his blessing."

"You know," Tae-san sighed, "When my grandson ran off to Germany a week or two ago, I thought he was running back to Noiz. Then he told me about Koujaku and how he had something he needed to do and someone he needed to save. I can only assume now that was you."

"Yes," I confirmed, "Aoba saved my life and I'll forever be grateful to him."

"Which now begs the question," she continued, "Clear, what the hell are you doing on my doorstep in a bumblebee costume?"

"Hoping you'll give me candy," Clear could hardly contain himself.

"Fine," she grumbled, throwing him some candy, "You got your candy. Now, go."

"Ok!" he squeaked, "Good night!"

I loved him. Clear was such a child, but he was such a doll. And I couldn't help but love him.

"Angel," Tae-san stopped me, "You do know about Clear, right?"

"I've watched Noiz put him back together with his chest open, "I told, "Yes. I know about Clear. Physically, he's an adult. Mentally, he's a child. All in all, he's a cybernetic intelligence."

"So, you do understand," she turned away, "In thier own way, all those boys need to be taken care of, but none of them more than Clear. He's delicate."

"I know," I nodded, "I helped Noiz get through his break up and taught him that he can still depend on people. Clear? I treat Clear like he's my own son. I don't know how he's going to be without me when Noiz and I move to San Diego. To tell you truth, it worries the hell out of me, but I know he'll be ok."

A little smile appeared on Tae-san's face, "You do understand. And I hope Noiz wises up and puts a ring on your finger."

That was kind of a sucker punch to the stomach. I hadn't thought about Noiz and me getting married. Maybe one day. But I couldn't help but wonder, "Why do you say that?"

"I have a very strong intuition," she explained, "As much as Aoba loved him, they didn't fit. I know how he is. Whether he wants to admit it or not, he wants to live the life of domesticity more than anything. Something calm and quiet. And he wouldn't get that with Noiz. And with him running off to Germany every chance he got, he'd always leave Aoba behind."

"I can vouch for that," I giggled, "Noiz's life is pretty fast paced."

"And I get the feeling you're exactly what he needs," Tae-san went on, "You're kind and caring. Or you wouldn't have taken Clear out tonight. You're beautiful and strong. Going by that burn scab on your arm."

"Yeah," I scratched at it a little, "This wasn't exactly pleasant to wake up from."

"Morphine, right?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Oh, yeah," she chuckled, "I'd hate to be the one to mess with you in a dark alley."

"Why?" I wondered, "I got captured by Morphine."

"And I wouldn't be surprised if they used one of their dirty tricks to get to you either," Tae-san's voice dripped with disdain, "I just treated a young man for their underhanded tactics."

"Bolt," I remembered, "Yeah. He's one of our guys. Such a shame."

"Well," she twiddled her thumbs, "It's getting late. You should be going."

"Ok," I agreed. I needed to be getting Clear back before trouble finds us, "Good night, Tae-san. It was nice meeting you."

"Angel," she grabbed my hand.

"Yes?"

"Before you and Noiz leave Midorijima," she demanded, "I want you to come and see me again. I'd like for us to talk some more."

"Ok," I nodded, "Do you want me to bring Noiz, too?"

"No," Tae-san shook her head, "Just you."

"I will," I assured, "Good night, Tae-san."

"Good night."

I caught up with Clear just down the street. Luckily, he had gotten distracted by a stray cat. Bless his short attention span. And the fact that passers-by left him alone to it. I'd hate for something bad to happen to Clear. Or to someone else that pushed his buttons the wrong way.

"I'd take you home," Clear held the cat in his arms, "And I'd love you and take care of you and play with you and I would call you my pretty, little nico-chan."

"Clear," I smiled, "Did you make a friend?"

"Yes, I did," he cuddled the cat, "Look at how pretty she is, Angel. Can we keep her?"

"Keep her where?" I asked.

"With you and Noiz!"

"Sorry, sweetie," I took the cat from him, "As cute and sweet as this one may be, she can't stay with us. I'd love to take this little baby home, but Noiz is allergic to cats. Otherwise, I'd say yes. But if you ever want to come see her again, you know where she'll be."

"Ok," Clear gave her one last pet, "I'll be back for you."

"Come on," I took his hand, "We should be heading home. Are you staying with Noiz and me tonight?"

"If it's not too much trouble."

The two of us went back to the East District and back home. Clear was already half asleep by the time we got there. I put him down on the futon in the living room, interrupting Noiz's game, "Welcome home. What's he doing here? He didn't OD on sugar, did he?"

"No," I grabbed Clear a blanket, "Just a big night. We just left Tae-san's house. He was getting sleepy."

"You went to Tae-san's house?" Noiz gave me a look.

"Aoba told us to," I covered the little baby up, "You need anything else, Clear?"

"No, thank you," he yawned a bit, "I'm good."

"Ok, sweetie," I kissed his forehead, "Get some sleep, alright?"

"Alright," Clear made himself comfortable. And not ten minutes went by before he was out like a light.

"Hold on," Noiz pulled me into his lap, "Wait for it."

"Wait for what?" I questioned his sanity.

All of a sudden, some strange beeping noises echoed through the room, "Do you know what that is?"

"It sounds like an old dial-up modem," I thought, "There's no way that amongst this fortress of modern technology with the information you have, it runs on dial-up.

"It's Clear," he chuckled, "I told you he made dial-up noises in his sleep."

"Play nice," I gave him a light swat to the chest.

"By the way," Noiz pulled me onto my feet, "I want you to come with me."

"What?" I wondered, following him into the bedroom.

"Tonight was supposed to be our night together," he pouted, "It was supposed to just be you and me. Remember? We weren't going to go out. We weren't going to invite anyone over. Just the two of us."

"Yeah," I kicked my shoes off, "But things changed."

"And you spent our night in going trick-or-treating with Clear."

"I'm sorry, baby," I pulled him down with me, "I have really bad mothering instincts. I couldn't leave him like that. Besides, you could've come with us."

"No," he kissed my cheek, "It's fine. There's always tomorrow, right?"

"See?" I cuddled him, "That's the spirit."

I loved spending time with Noiz. Just him and me. Granted, we still had Clear making dubstep in our living room, but regardless, I had him. He had me. That wasn't changing. And soon enough, we'd be in San Diego. My two loves could finally become one.

 **A/N: Ok, NOW I'm on hiatus for NaNo season. I thought a little Halloween special would've been a good idea. What the hell? Why not? You can't tell me that going trick-or-treating with Clear wouldn't be absolutely precious. YOU ARE LYING TO YOURSELF. And we will be seeing Tae-san again. And we'll be taking off pretty soon. And this story's about to come to its end. I'm sorry to say it, but it's going to be ending soon. Not now, obviously, because you're about to go an entire month without a chapter, but soon. Probably by the end of the year. I'm sorry to be dropping this bomb on you, but it's true. But until then! See you next chapter! xx**


	29. His Name is Tae-san

**A/N: Honey…I'm home. I missed you guys. I really did. NaNo went well in case you were wondering. I had the 50K goal in a week and a half. I finished with almost 175K. The rough cut is going up on Tumblr probably today. Hopefully today. Fingers crossed. I thought I'd edit it just a little bit. Regardless of all that, I'm actually quite surprised with all the follows this has gotten since I've been gone. Welcome, new people and I'll see you guys at the end, ok?**

"Are you sure you want to do this, Angel?" Noiz worried, throwing me my cardigan off the kitchen chair.

"Noiz," I rolled my eyes, "It's just tea with Tae-san. You act like I'm going to meet up with my assassin. If I didn't know any better, I'd say I'm going to hang out with Trip and Virus."

"I'm just a little worried," he admitted, "Tae-san is a force of nature. She's terrifying."

"She's not that bad," I grabbed my bag.

"She once tore a man's arm off with her teeth."

"No, she didn't."

"She once ate a box of staples just to prove she could."

"No, she didn't," I kissed Noiz's cheek, "I love you."

"She's punched a baby."

"I'll be back in an hour or two," I shut the door behind me and headed off to Aoba's grandmother's house. I had only met Tae-san once. She didn't seem like she'd kill me with her bare hands. I'm sure I'd come out of it alive. Besides, it was just Tae-san and me having tea. How bad could it really be?

I knocked on her front door and heard her shuffling toward it, "Hello, Angel."

"Hi, Tae-san," I bowed, "Good morning."

"Please come in," she invited, "I just boiled the kettle. Oolong good for you?"

"That's fine with me," I sat at her table. In all honesty, I was a little nervous to be here alone. When I got the call from her last week, I thought it was an invitation for the both of us, but Tae-san told me to leave Noiz behind.

"I've actually heard quite a bit about you," she sat with me with a pair of teacups and the teapot in her hand.

"Have you?" I tried to keep my shakes under control.

"Not just from Aoba," Tae-san started pouring, "From everyone. Aoba. Koujaku. Clear. When Mink occasionally stops by, he won't ever shut up about you. You've been such a positive influence on all of them. I had to see it for myself."

"Yeah," I grumbled under my breath, "It's all a part of my power."

"Power?" she wondered, "What kind of power?"

"I'm a walking antidepressant," I told, "Only I have some of the most wicked side effects. Once I leave, I drive people to near suicidal levels."

"So, you were an experiment, too?" Tae-san looked me over.

"Yeah," I nodded, "My dad was a biochemical engineer before he retired. Come to find out his lab was a Toue owned subsidiary. He basically made me in a laboratory."

"Same way as Aoba and Sei," a look of sadness washed over her.

"Sei?" I wondered, "Who's Sei?"

"Aoba had a twin," Tae-san sighed out, "They both have powers of manipulation; Aoba with his voice and Sei with his eyes. However, we lost Sei when Platinum Jail fell."

"My condolences," my heart ached.

"Look, Angel," Tae-san got up and dug around in a cabinet full of small, orange bottles, "I can give you a certain kind of medication. I developed it myself. It should suppress your power. For the safety of others. Would you like some?"

"Please?" I sang, "Just in case it comes back?"

"Here," she put a pill bottle on the table, "This should help. And if customs ask, it'll come up as a medication for bipolar disorder. You should be ok."

"Thank you, Tae-san," I slipped the bottle in my bag.

"You're welcome."

"Can I ask you something, though?" I took a sip from my teacup, "Why are you doing this for me?"

"Because," Tae-san took my hand, "You don't deserve this. You didn't ask for this. You're a very special girl doing the best you can with the hand you were dealt. I admire that about you. And besides, if you can manage someone like Noiz by yourself and you haven't punched him yet, you've already won half the battle. You're very special to the others, too. There has to be a reason."

"What do they say about me?" my curiosity was killing me.

"Clear comes by once in a while," she began, sitting back down, "He rarely wears his gas mask anymore. And that's because of you. Every time he takes it off, he says he hears you in the back of his mind, saying how he has a face and how it's an adorable face. Koujaku tells me you were the first woman he's ever met that never treated him like a piece of meat and treated him like a human being. Someone that appreciated him for his mind over his pretty face. Mink…Mink gushes over you. He really does think of you like a little sister. In that respect, you're the last of his family. And Aoba…He told me he couldn't pick anyone better for Noiz. I've never seen Noiz so happy. I didn't know that boy was capable of cracking a smile until you. I love Aoba. Don't get me wrong. But I have to agree with him. Noiz wasn't his one. You're Noiz's one. Whether or not he sees that yet is in his hands, but I'm sure he will one day."

"Speaking of Noiz," I wiped the tear out of my eye, "I should probably be going. I left him to pack by himself. With all of his electronics, he could probably use some help."

"Don't stay gone," Tae-san threw her arms around me.

"We won't," I hoped. Maybe one day, we will be able to come back to Midorijima and everything will be fine, but until Trip and Virus are gone, we will be, too.

I got back home and noticed Noiz wasn't the only one home. Clear was here, too! Although, when I walked in, Clear was tangled up in wires. And Noiz looked like he was ready to kill a man. This is why I should never leave them two home by themselves. I come back and this is the kind of shenanigans I have to walk in on.

"Um, Noiz?" I approached him slowly, "What happened here?"

"Clear's a complete moron."

"Waahhhh!" Clear whined, "You're so mean, Noiz! I was only trying to help!"

"I told you to wrap up the HDMI cables," Noiz cradled his face in his hands, "How in the hell did you get so tangled?"

"I wasn't trying to!" Clear squeaked, "I started wrapping them up and they got away from me."

I swear…A mother's work is never done.

 **A/N: Sorry it was such a short chapter. I'm still trying to get back in the swing of things. I haven't touched the fan fiction in a month. Give me a little time. I promise next week will be a longer chapter. But it was so good seeing you guys again. And I'll see you next chapter. xx**


	30. His Name is Leaving

**A/N: I'm so sorry, guys. I didn't mean for this to be up so late. I've been out shopping all day and I didn't think it was going to take as long as what it did. So, if you'll forgive me, I'll give you a chapter. Is that ok with you? God, I hope so.**

I crawled out of bed and rubbed the sun out of my eyes. Hold on…Where was Noiz? I'm pretty sure he was right here when I went to sleep last night. I walked out of our bedroom and found him in the kitchen with a cup of coffee in his boxers. What a view to wake up to…I wasn't complaining.

"Morning, beautiful," he smiled a bit, giving me heart palpitations like it was the first day we met all over again.

Morning," I blushed, hiding my face, "You're awfully affectionate this morning. What'sw the occasion?"

"No occasion," Noiz pulled me against his chest, "I got my girl. It's our last day in Midorijima. I can't complain."

Knock, knock.

"I should get that, should I?" I assumed.

"Yeah," he let me go, "You got more clothes on than I do."

"Barely," I giggled. In my defense, I had one of his t-shirts on and my underwear, but regardless, I grabbed the front door, "Hi."

"Good morning," a delivery guy stood at the door, "I have a certified letter that needs to be signed for. Do you live here?"

"For the next forty-eight hours," I took his pen, scribbling my name on the line, "Thank you."

"Have a good day, ma'am!" Cringe. I hated being called ma'am with a burning passion. Drove me nuts.

He did all he could to keep from looking me over. I must admit I was adorable when I first woke up. I brought the padded envelope over to Noiz, "Who'd be sending us anything so sensitive it'd be sent certified?"

"Did you not look at the return address?" he pointed out, sliding his finger through the envelope, "It's from Theo. This is our new documentation."

"That's nice of him."

"Congratulations, Angel," Noiz pulled a new passport out, handing it to me, "Your name is now Eliza Little. Huh…"

"What?" I looked over his shoulder.

"It seems that my little brother has a sense of humor," he showed me the rest of our papers, "He's got us as a married couple…And he changed my name to Richard. That's cute, Theo…"

"What's so bad about that?" I wondered.

"He changed my name to Richard Little," Noiz reiterated, "My name is now Dick Little. If we weren't leaving tomorrow, I'd be sending these back."

"I could just call you Richie," I suggested, "And I'd be more than happy to be your wife on paper."

"Good," Noiz kissed the top of my head, "I can't believe the day has finally come."

"I miss San Diego," I admitted, nuzzling into my boyfriend…husband's chest, "But I'm going to miss Midorijima. Noiz, I don't want to go."

"I know," he hugged me tighter, "We'll come back one day. I promise you that much."

"Thanks, baby," I sighed out.

"Hey," Noiz stole a quick kiss, "I love you, Eliza."

"I love you, too, Richie," I smiled.

"We have a bit more packing to do," he reminded me, "Probably should get on it."

I loved that boy. For the rest of the morning, Noiz and I finished the rest of the packing that he and Clear started yesterday. In my thorough search of our apartment, I stumbled across a shoebox in our closet. Sure enough, curiosity got the best of me. this was on Noiz's side of the closet. I couldn't help myself. I took the lid off and peeked inside. Huh…I didn't know what to expect, but it definitely wasn't this.

A pressed and dried dahlia. Hey! Those were the flowers Noiz sent to me when I was in Royalton and he came back from Germany the first time around. And this was one of my first rough sketches of the knight from the Tale of TenshiUsagiChan that I could've sworn I scrapped. And this was a note I doodled on. and my first warm up drawing I did of Noiz after not drawing for ages. And…Oh my God…This was a receipt…But not just any receipt.

This receipt had my name on it. And my phone number. And the order for half a dozen frozen pizzas and a gallon of rocky road. This was the day we met in one little slip of paper. After everything we've been through and after all this time, I can't believe he kept this. I needed explanation. And I needed it now.

"Noiz?"

"Yeah, Angel?" he called back from the living room.

"Care to explain this?" I walked out and showed him the slip in my hand.

"It's a receipt," Noiz pointed out, "What about it?"

"It's not just a receipt, Noiz," I elaborated, "It's _the_ receipt."

"What can I say?" he shrugged me off, "You made me sentimental. You make it sound like it's a crime."

"No," I shook my head, getting down on the floor with him, "This was so sweet…"

"That's not the only little memento of our relationship I have," Noiz pulled my arms around him, "I got a few."

"I know," I cuddled into him, "I saw the shoebox."

"In all honesty," he confessed, "When I first met you, I couldn't stand you."

"Thanks, asshole," I shoved him, "I'm so glad this is how we're starting our fake marriage."

"I just broke up with Aoba!" Noiz defended, "I hated everyone."

"Alright," I let it slide, "That's fair."

"I will say this, though," he cradled me, "I will never, in a million years, no matter the vast wealth I may have, buy a rice cooker."

"Good," I kissed his cheek, "Because I need something to stay useful in our relationship and something to keep you around. How will I do that without my rice cooker?"

"Because your superpowers can only get you so far?" he teased.

"Actually," I told, "Tae-san gave me something for that. She said it'll suppress my powers, so I won't make people want to kill themselves."

"Angel," Noiz spoke softer, "Are you sure you're ready for this?"

"I'm going to have to be," I laid my head on his chest, "Mink said I can go back to the shop."

"And I can keep brokering from the US," he thought it over, "Since Rhyme's starting to gain popularity over there, too. You think you'll make a comeback to the conventions and go back to cosplaying?"

"I don't know," I shrugged, "Maybe."

"What about Rhyme?"

"I don't know," I repeated, "Maybe if I change my username. TenshiUsagiChan is a little too well known for inquiring minds."

"Bedroom?" he offered, covering my neck in kisses.

"Later," I squirmed away from him, "I have to go see Koujaku before we leave and I have an appointment with him in ten minutes."

"Tease," Noiz pouted as I got up.

"Love you, too!" I grabbed my bag off the counter and headed out. Not that I didn't want to have one last night with Noiz in our apartment. Priorities. Trip and Virus didn't need to find me any time soon. I met Koujaku at the apartment he and Aoba were sharing and knocked at the door. We couldn't do it at his usual studio. God knows that's probably being watched.

"Hi there, Angel," Koujaku let me in, "Or is it something else now?"

"Eliza," I told, sitting in his chair in the back, "And my husband Richie is still packing our apartment. Theo got a little cheeky with the names."

"Are you guys leaving already?" he whined, "I was hoping we'd have a little more time together. Any thoughts?"

"Surprise me," I gave him free reign, "Whatever you want to do, Koujaku. I completely trust you."

"So," Koujaku flashed me a little smirk, "A strawberry blonde? Is that ok with you?"

"NO!" I put my foot down, "Noiz and I don't need to look like we're related. That's twisted, Koujaku. Even for you."

"You said whatever I wanted," he poked at me, "So, you do care a little."

"Not something that'll make Noiz and me look like brother and sister," I set my limits, "Anything else is fair game."

Koujaku picked a different color, a deep, rich, chocolate brown, and the two of us got started. Out of everyone I've met in Midorijima, as much as I loved Noiz, as much as I tolerated Kyu, Koujaku was the closest thing I had to an honest to God girl friend since I got here. It was going to suck leaving him. And Aoba, too. And Clear. And my entire Midorijima family. My Ruff Rabbit boys. Bolt. At least once we got to San Diego, I'd still have Mink. And I'd always have Noiz. Hell, we were married now.

"You know, Angel," he threw his arms around me, "I'm really going to miss you."

"I'll miss you, too, sweetie," I nuzzled into him, "Where's your boyfriend? I want to say goodbye to him, too."

"He's probably with your boyfriend," Koujaku assumed, "I'd leave them for a while, if I were you."

"Why?" I wondered.

"This is their final goodbye," he pointed out, "This is the last time they're going to see each other for a while. Even when Noiz would run off to Germany for Theo, Aoba knew he was coming back. This time, he's not coming back. This goodbye is truly goodbye. They're going to need their space."

"Ok," I could feel Aoba's heartache. I knew the hell it was not having Noiz. Thinking Noiz is never going to come back. But I knew he and I were going to run away together. And it was all Morphine's fault. Once Trip and Virus were out of the picture, we'd be able to come back here and everything would be ok again. I gave Koujaku a quick kiss goodbye and headed down to the café on the corner. I needed a minute to sort everything out.

By this time tomorrow, Noiz and I were going to be living in San Diego. We were going to be away from our family and friends here and I'd be back amongst my family and friends there. I'm sure they're all going to be thrilled to have me back on a little more permanent basis. I just wish the rest of them would be able to be there, too.

"Hi, Angel," a precious, little cybernetic intelligence joined me, "Mind if I sit with you?"

"Of course not, Clear," I smiled a bit. Hard not to when Clear was around, "Go ahead."

"Why are you all by yourself?" he asked, sitting with me.

"Just letting Noiz and Aoba say goodbye," I sighed out, "We'll be gone in the morning. They'll need a minute."

"Don't go, Angel," Clear took my hands, "Please. I don't want you to go."

"I know, honey," I swallowed the lump swelling in my throat, "But we'll be back one day."

"Promise…?" For being, in all technicality, a robot, Clear sure did have a mastery of human emotion. Especially the puppy eyes. Those killed me every time.

"I promise," I swore to him, "Every six months, right? That's how often Noiz has to do your maintenance. And Aoba can't do it or he'll end up making a mess of you again."

"That's right!" he beamed. There. Balance was restored to the universe.

Ring, ring.

"Speaking of Noiz," I answered my Coil, "Hey, baby. What's up?"

"Meet me outside the café by our place," he demanded, "I have one last thing I want us to go do."

"I'm already there right now," I told, "I'm sitting outside with Clear. You can't miss us."

"Hi, Noiz!" Clear chimed in.

"I'm on my way now," Noiz brushed him off, "Agatha and I will be there soon."

"Be careful with her," I begged.

"Always am."

I bit my lip, trying to hold back a smile, "Ich liebe dich."

"I love you, too."

Click.

"When did you learn German, Angel?" Clear asked.

"After being with Noiz for so long," I explained, "I picked up a few choice phrases. And Theo helps. And some phrasebooks I might have downloaded."

"Nichts schlägt, es als eine erste sprache zu haben," a familiar voice spoke behind us, "Alle phrasenbücher der welt werden dir dort nicht helfen." (Nothing beats having it as a first language. All the phrasebooks in the world won't help you there.)

"Show off," I rolled my eyes, catching my boyfriend's dirty smirk out of the corner of my eye.

"You tried, though," Noiz kissed my forehead, "That's all that matters."

"So?" I wondered, "What's the thing we have to go do?"

"We're going to see someone," he pulled me to my feet, "Clear, do you know if Mizuki's in his shop?"

"Probably," Clear figured, "I should be going anyway. I'll miss you both terribly."

"We'll be back," I promised, "Don't worry, Clear."

The three of us parted ways and Noiz brought me to whoever Mizuki was. Wait a minute. Why did that name sound familiar? Hold on! Mizuki was the Dry Juice leader! We had yet to meet. Why would Noiz want me to meet him now? I didn't know much about him outside of his Rib reputation. But I trusted Noiz with my life. I'm sure he wouldn't do anything to put me in danger…intentionally.

"Hey, Noiz!" a beautiful man greeted us as we walked into a place called Black Needle.

"Mizuki," Noiz gave him a nod, "Do you have it done?"

"I do!" he chimed, looking over to me, "Hello."

"Hi," I blushed out of reflex.

"Is this her?" Mizuki asked, "Angel, right?"

"Yeah," I nodded, "That's right."

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you," his lips brushed the back of my knuckles, "I'm Mizuki. Can I see your arm?"

"Which one?" I wondered, "The one I keep my Coil on or the one with the big ass burn on it?"

"The big ass burn," Mizuki gently pushed my sleeve up, "I'm sorry this had to happen."

"I thought," Noiz gave me a little smile, "You'd want the Ruff Rabbit mark back…"

"Noiz…" a single tear escaped my eye, "Of course I do."

"Alright then!" Mizuki got his ink ready, "Let's get started, shall we?"

 **A/N: Again, I'm so sorry this is up super, super late. I tried to. I really did. I'm so burned out right now I can hardly see straight. But can we take a minute to appreciate Noiz being sentimental? Do you know how much secondhand aww I got from that? I made myself melt today. And I love it. Anyway, guys, I'll see you next chapter. xx**


	31. His Name is Richie Now

**A/N: I was really hoping I wasn't going to have to put this kind of thing in this week, but again, I'm really sorry this is up late. I didn't mean for it to be. I had some things to do in town today and it's like as soon as I got home, the list kept getting longer and longer and more and more shit had to get done, but what matters is that I still updated. It's better than nothing. I'm still super sorry, but I'm going to let you read now. Ok? Are we good? I hope so.**

After everything, Morphine, the incident with Noiz and Koujaku, the Ruff Rabbit induction, Bolt getting kidnapped. It's all led to now. Noiz and I have been through hell since we started dating, but we've always gotten through it together. And we came out of it stronger than ever. Although, because of Morphine, I had to leave my new home and my new family. Assholes. It would get me back in San Diego, though, so I guess it's not all bad.

As our last box was loaded onto the moving truck bound for the airport, I watched with sad eyes and a heavy heart. Noiz could tell, too. He knew something wasn't right with me. He took my hand, trying to comfort me to the best of his ability. This was probably just as hard on him as it was on me. Midorijima was his home, too. The only one he knew outside of Germany.

"Didn't think you'd be getting out of here without one last goodbye, did you?" Koujaku and Aoba joined us.

"Hi, guys," I slapped on a fake smile, "You come to see us off?"

"Of course," Koujaku threw his arms around me. As much as I loved Noiz, I kind of needed that more than anything. When I got hugs from Koujaku, they'd remind me of a discount version of Mink, "It's not going to be the same without you guys around."

"We'll miss it here, too," my voice broke.

"So," Aoba blushed, "You're really going through with this?"

"Yeah," Noiz couldn't make eye contact with him.

"I'm…" Aoba was just as tongue tied, "I'm really going to miss you, Noiz…"

"Me, too."

Aoba pulled Noiz against his chest, cradling him so delicately. I could see it all over Aoba's face. And a little in Koujaku, too. Aoba didn't want to let go and Noiz didn't want him to. A hint of jealousy sparked n his boyfriend's eyes. And some was about to be in mine, too. But I understand. First loves are a bitch. And Aoba was Noiz's first love. I'm sure the feeling was mutual. And now, they were going to be separated by an ocean and almost six thousand miles. I know Noiz used to make trips back and forth to Germany all the time when they were still together, but this was different.

"Waaaaaaait!"

"Clear," I awed, "We can't take you with us. You'd set off airport security worse than Noiz. And that's kind of saying something. Not to mention, once we get you in the States, they'd end up thinking you're a new kind of bomb."

"I'm not a bomb, though," Clear was about to start bawling. I couldn't be the cause of that.

"I know, honey," I cuddled into him.

"Where's Mink?" he wondered, "You'd think he'd be here, too."

"He caught the five o'clock flight this morning," I explained, "Mink was always a morning person. I don't understand it."

"You and me both, sister," Noiz pulled me away from Clear, "Morning is not a concept we're meant to be familiar with. Early afternoon would be much better."

"After a good all nighter?" I assumed.

"Definitely," he gave me a little kiss, "We should get going."

"Yeah," I agreed, "The longer we stick around, the sadder it's going to get?"

"When will you be back around?" Koujaku asked.

"In about…" Noiz undid a couple of buttons on Clear's shirt.

"Noiz," I stopped him, "What the hell are you doing?"

"We were together for how long?" Aoba joked, "You never wanted to do stuff outside like this."

"Forgive me for being the prude in the relationship," Noiz scanned his Coil over Clear's chest, "Three months, two weeks, and four days. I got a thing that checks Clear's tune-up specs in my Coil. The scanner's in his chest."

"Oh…" I blushed. And here I thought Noiz was making a move on the cute little robot.

"We're going to miss you, Angel," Aoba hugged me tight with the same enthusiasm he had with Noiz. Maybe I was overreacting a little bit. Air travel always did get me a little jumpy.

"Maybe we should come see you once you and Noiz get all settled in, yeah?" Koujaku suggested, taking me from his boyfriend, kissing the top of my head.

"Look for Richard Little," I told, "We should be the only one in the book. Unless we're under my name. Do you think Theo would've done that when he made our American documentation?"

"No way," Noiz promised, "If I know Theo as well as I think I do, he'd make sure that it'd be under Richard Little."

"Wait a minute," a dirty little grin appeared on Koujaku's face, "Does this mean your name is Dick Little?"

"Dammit, Theo!" Noiz pouted, "Remind me the next time we go to Germany to kick my brother's ass to the moon."

"Will do."

And on that note, Noiz and I left Midorijima behind and got on our flight San Diego bound. Dammit. I was really going to miss Japan. I liked living in Midorijima. I never wanted to leave. I really thought I had found my forever home there. A part of me was still there. A piece of my heart would always be in the east district at Noiz's old apartment. And I think a piece of his was, too.

"Noiz," I rested my head on his shoulder, "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

Here goes nothing, "Are you still in love with Aoba?"

"Are you still in love with Yuki?" he retaliated.

"Hell no," I assured, "You saw the kind of dick he was to me."

"Going on that logic," Noiz held me a little closer, "No. I'm not still in love with Aoba. For the sake of our social circle, we've decided to stay friends. Mostly because of you."

"Me?"

"You," he went on, "You and Aoba became friends very quickly. That's something I wasn't banking on. But after what happened in Berlin, he and I could put our differences behind us. And we could go back to being friends again. He saved someone very important to me."

"Me?" I figured.

"Who else?" Noiz scoffed, "After Theo, I'd put you in front of my own mother. Not to mention, Aoba and I were together for a few years. We're going to be close. Just because we're close doesn't mean I still need him to satisfy me. That's what he has Koujaku for. That's what I have you for. It's just us now, Angel. You and me."

"Ok," I sighed out, "So, you don't regret being with me? You don't regret leaving Midorijima with me? You don't regret staying with Aoba?"

"Not at all," he ran his fingers down the back of my arm, sending chills up my spine, "Although, you saw that ass of his. Hitting that one last time wouldn't have killed me."

"Noiz!" I snapped, giving him a quick swat to the shoulder.

"Joking," he chuckled to himself, "You know better."

"You're such a jerk," I giggled, settling down a little, "You earned your name, Dick."

"I thought you were calling me Richie, Eliza," Noiz kissed the top of my head.

"When you act like a dick," I smirked, "I'll call you a dick."

"Fair enough," Noiz let me have that one.

And before we knew it, the two of us landed in San Diego. Jetlagged all to hell, but we made it. I couldn't wait to see our new apartment. Theo had sent us a set of keys in our cushioned envelope with all of our new documentation in it. I just hope it's not the size of a postage stamp like our old apartment. Don't get me wrong. I liked Noiz's apartment, but it was meant for just Noiz. Not for me. This was going to be the beginning of our new life together.

Mother of God, this place…It wasn't an apartment like I thought it was going to be. We had a small, two story house. And it was absolutely perfect. We went from a postage stamp apartment to a house that looked like something from a postcard. White house, dark blue shutters. It looked like a miniature Victorian. Catching me completely off guard, Noiz scooped me up in his arms.

"What the hell?" I freaked a bit, "What are you doing?"

"Welcome to our new life together, Eliza," Noiz cradled me, "Let's hope Trip and Virus never find us here. Now, I think it's tradition for me to carry you across the threshold, no?"

"I'm not going to stop you," I smiled, "Kind of hard for me to do that. Just don't drop me."

"I won't," he promised, kissing my forehead. The inside was just as beautiful as the outside. And so adorably decorated. I wanted to kiss whoever Theo sent to situate all of our furniture. So much brighter than Noiz's apartment. Very nautical. I was feeling it, "Hey, Angel?"

"Yeah, baby?" I laid my head on his chest.

"I have an order to pick up," Noiz put me down on the bright, white couch. We had a white couch. There was no way in hell this couch was going to stay clean, "Are you going to be ok by yourself for a bit?"

"I'll be fine," I brushed him off, digging around in my bag, "Besides, I'm not completely alone."

"About time!" Agatha's shrill, angry voice chimed, "Do you know how much it sucks being off for so long?"

"Sorry, Agatha," I apologized as she climbed onto my belly, "Lookie. Isn't it cute?"

"Nice place," she jumped down to look around, "We live here now?"

"That's right," Noiz confirmed, giving me a quick kiss, "I'll be back in a little while, ok?"

"Ok," I shooed him out, "Have fun storming the castle."

"Not storming any castles," he assured, shutting the door behind him.

This was my house. This was my life now. I was back living in San Diego. I had just gotten off a twelve-hour flight. How in the hell was I stir crazy already? Fortunately, our house was in a killer location. The office was just down the street. Might as well go and say hi to the boss.

"Come on, Aggie," I called for her, "We're taking a walk."

"Where are we going?"

"Full Bloom Floral," I grabbed my bag off the back of the couch, "Hurry up."

"I don't want to," she pouted.

"Tori's going to be there," I bribed her. For being a machine, Agatha had quite the libido. And Noiz didn't bother to program that out of her when he put her back together.

"Fine," my little roly-poly panda toddled out the door behind me and the two of us headed down the street to Mink's shop. But of course, we couldn't make it all the way there without some complaints, "I don't like it here, Angel. It's too bright."

"We'll score you some sunglasses," I pacified her, "And you can't call me Angel anymore, Agatha. You have to call me Eliza. We don't know who's listening."

"Hold on," her little heart stopped, "Hello…"

"Hi, Tori," I jumped behind the counter, sticking a cigar in his beak.

"Hello, Angel," Tori regained his balance.

"Eliza…" I corrected, yet again, "Mink!"

"Angel!" Mink threw his arms around me, "What are you doing here by yourself? I mean, I'm happy to see you, but why are you alone? Where's Noiz?"

"Noiz is dead," I told, "Angel is, too. My husband Richie went to go pick up some order. My name is Eliza."

"Eliza?" he gave me a look.

"Theo picked it," I threw him under the bus, "Not my decision."

"No," Mink nodded, "It suits you. Hold on a minute. Husband?"

"Yeah," I blushed, "Also not our decision. Theo's. And it was all kind of dropped in our lap yesterday."

"So, on paper," he thought out loud, "You're married to Noiz?"

"Yes," I confirmed.

Ding!

"I knew I'd find you here." Speak of the devil.

"Hey, baby," I wrapped my arms around his waist.

"Hi, Mink," Noiz kept cordial.

However, Mink reacted a bit more rash than that, separating the two of us and driving Noiz into the wall, "You're married? No ceremony? Not even ten minutes at a courthouse?"

"It's all on paper," Noiz choked out, "Relax, Mink."

"You do know I'm ordained, right?" Mink let him go, "If you two were going to get married, I could've done that."

"Again," I reiterated, "It wasn't our decision. You want to bitch at someone? Hop a flight to Berlin and bitch at Theo."

"If I knew you'd be so up for it, Mink," Noiz took a little box out of his pocket, "I would've ran it by you first. Maybe…We could do that now. Before we truly bury Noiz and Angel and take on Richie and Eliza."

"Noiz…" I gasped, "What did you do?"

"This was what I had to pick up," he opened the box, sliding a sparkling emerald set in silver on my finger.

"A…" I had no words, "You got me a wedding ring?"

"We are married now," Noiz pointed out, "This would just make it a little more legit."

"But Noiz," my voice broke, "This is so sudden."

"It's inevitable," he smiled a bit, "I love you. Whether you're Angel or Eliza, I love you. And I promise to make sure that's never ever changes."

"I feel like such a bitch," I giggled a little to keep myself from bawling, "You got one for me, but I don't have one for-"

Noiz didn't even hesitate. Another box came out of his pocket, "They were a matching set. I couldn't say no."

"Alright then," I beamed, putting his silver band on his finger, "I promise to never be a pain in the ass to you. Not like I have been. Because I love you and you don't deserve that. You and me, right?"

"That's right."

"By the power vested in me by the state of California," Mink blessed us, "I now pronounce you husband and wife."

"Can I kiss her in front of you, Mink?" Noiz asked, "Or would that be too-"

I didn't care who we were in front of. Even Mink wasn't going to stop me from kissing my man. My husband. Weird. I never would've guessed that the weirdo in line at the shop with pizza and ice cream and had a face with more holes in it than Swiss cheese would've been the one I shared a last name with. I fixed this broken, little toy. And in a way, he fixed me. And I never wanted to let him go.

 **A/N: Well, guys. I didn't want to say this, but this was the end. This is how our story ends. Noiz and Angel living happily ever after in a quickie wedding in Mink's shop in San Diego. No more dealing with Morphine. No more problems. Although, I will be posting an epilogue next week. It'll be taking place a year later after this ends. A little time jump, if you will. I hope that's ok with you. And I'll get sappy with you then. But anyway, I'll see you next chapter.**


	32. His Name is Family

**A/N: Hi, guys. Welp. We've come this far together. I'm proud of us. Especially of me. I've wanted to drop this story so many times. But at this point, I've wanted to drop a lot of my stories at least twice. Now, I'm going to wait until the end to get sappy. Because if you didn't know from last week's update, this is the last chapter. It's a time jump to a year later after "Eliza" and "Richie" have settled in San Diego and everything's a little more low key. Now, if it's all the same to you, I'm going to get to work, drink my earl grey, and we'll talk later, ok?**

Let's see. The dark blue dress or the purple dress? It didn't matter if my name was Angel or Eliza. My ass was still so painfully indecisive. However, it was times like these where I was thankful I didn't live alone. I had my favorite little panda in the whole wide world to help me out with these sort of things. What could I say? She had an eye for color.

"Agatha!" I called out, "Come here!"

"What?" my Allmate toddled into the bedroom.

"I'm stuck in a pickle," I sighed, holding up my options, "Which one of these says I'm the one that wrote the book and this party is for me? The dark blue or the purple?"

"The dark blue," a grumbly voice echoed through the hall, "The dark blue dress, the silver heels, and a pearl necklace. I love you, Eliza, but you're overthinking things too much."

"I know," I threw myself on our bed, "It's a character flaw. I'm really trying to work on it."

"You? Character flaws?" he pulled me against his chest, nuzzling his face in my neck, "Impossible."

"My, my," I blushed, surrendering to Noiz's kiss, "Someone's awfully affectionate. What's the occasion? You're not doing something silly like trying to hide infidelity, are you?"

"After all the hell we've been through?" he scoffed, "Of course not. It's my wife's book release party. I couldn't be more proud. All I want to do is show her a little love."

"I love you, too, Richie," I curled into him, "Now, I need to get dressed. And so do you."

"If it's your party," Noiz thought out loud, "Why can't you show up in footie pajamas?"

"Because," I rolled my eyes, shimmying my dress up my legs, "It's a formal event. My agent would kill me. You know how Brian is."

"I never liked him," he pouted, "He's too much of a pushy pain in the ass."

"Oh, honey," I giggled, "You and Brian are cut from the same cloth. Brian's just a perfectionist."

"He's a slave driver."

"He got me where I am today," I shut him up, "And I'll be eternally grateful."

"I still don't like him."

"Quit with the pouting," I teased, "I swear to God, you're such a baby."

"Don't you have a party to get ready for, TenshiUsagiChan?" Noiz retaliated, unzipping the back of my dress after watching me struggle with it for the past ten minutes. That dick.

"You're lucky I love you," I grumbled, grabbing a hanger out of the closet, "Or I'd beat the hell out of you."

"Promise?" he smirked in the mirror.

I put my hand up to my twisted little weirdo's face, "Who hurt you?"

"How long do you have?"

"Not very," I checked my Coil, "We need to get going as soon as humanly possible. Can you do that for me?"

"My pleasure."

Noiz was oddly cuddly with me today. All day. He was hiding something from me. I could tell. We had been together long enough for me to know his little tells. And the biggest one was him being either overly affectionate or ridiculously withdrawn. There was something going on and the possibilities flooding my brain put an instant knot in my stomach.

But I'd soldier on. I'd be fine. I knew there was nothing that could be done to me that would equal what I've had done to me before. Morphine kind of set the bar for my torture threshold. I just hope to God they haven't found us. I'm pretty sure between Theo and Aoba, we've managed to stay off their radar. Hell, I even got back into playing Rhyme and smoking everyone like a good Cuban cigar. Granted, I had to register a new name and had to officially kill off TenshiUsagiChan. But regardless, the death of TenshiUsagiChan led to the rise of QueenPhoenix, who had already made quite a name for herself, so I couldn't complain.

Please…God, don't let this be Morphine.

Noiz and I showed up to the party and I started to loosen up. Amazing what happens when I get a little vodka in me. And once I was by myself, I got swamped by people. This person with that magazine or that newspaper or that blog wanting some sort of statement from me or wanting me to set up a full interview. All the stock questions one would expect. How did I get started? What made me want to do a manga? What's it like being an American writing something that's traditionally Japanese? How did I get the inspiration to do TenshiUsagiChan? All the things that I should have Brian here for. Where the hell was he?

"Excuse me," a familiar voice thundered behind me as his strong hand rested on my shoulder, "I'm sorry, everyone, but my client isn't giving statements at this time. But please, enjoy the party. Have a good time."

The crowd around me dissipated and I felt like I could breathe again. Although, I couldn't help myself but lay my head on his chest, "Thank you, Brian. You're a life saver."

"Brian?" he giggled, keeping his voice down, "Try again, Angel."

I looked up at my savior and my heart stopped. There was a face I hadn't seen in a while, "Koujaku!"

"Hi there," he hugged me a little tighter.

"What are you doing here?" I freaked.

"And miss your release party?" Koujaku beamed, "No way. I couldn't do that. It's an open bar and I missed you."

"I missed you, too, sweetie," I reveled in his embrace, "Are you here by yourself or is your boyfriend here, too?"

"Boyfriend?" he gave me a look, "Excuse me?"

"Aoba," I elaborated, "You two didn't do something stupid like split up, did you?"

"He's not my boyfriend anymore," Koujaku broke the news, "Sorry to crush your hopes here."

"I'm his fiancé now!" Aoba attack hugged me from behind, drunk out of his mind, "Angel, we missed you so much!"

"Aoba found the mini bar in our hotel room," Koujaku apologized, "I'm sorry. He pregamed."

"No worries," I didn't really mind being used as Aoba's crutch, "But congratulations, boys. When's the wedding?"

"We haven't set a date yet," Aoba slurred, "I think he's ashamed of me."

"I'm not ashamed of you, Aoba," Koujaku rolled his eyes, "You know I love you. You know how deep rooted that love is."

"Just like how deep throated you're going to be later tonight," Aoba threw his arms around his fiancé's neck.

"Hold on a second," I stopped them both, "How did you guys even know my release party was tonight?"

"That might have been my fault," another familiar face joined us.

"Theo!" I hugged my little brother, "I thought you were supposed to be in Berlin."

"Like Koujaku said," Theo smirked, "It's an open bar. Beautiful people. Couldn't turn it down."

"I might have sent out an email blast," Noiz joined us, "Surprise."

"Richie," I wrapped my arms around my husband, "You jerk."

"Your jerk," he kissed the top of my head.

"So, you really stuck with that, huh, Wil?" Theo jabbed, "You're still Dick Little?"

"I owe you a thorough ass beating for that," Noiz glared a hole through his brother for about half a second. But then, he realized what he had. And a little smile graced his face.

In all honesty, since we left Midorijima, I had never seen Noiz so happy. The more I studied his face, the more I noticed how much he and Theo look alike. It's incredible what happens when most of his piercings come out. When we were doing our best to destroy our former selves in order to keep Trip and Virus from finding us, Noiz took out most of his piercings. I knew that at one time, he may not have been able to feel pain, but by the look in his eye, he didn't want to feel anything anymore. His surgical steel security blanket…

When I had gotten halfway through, I couldn't take all of them out. I couldn't bring myself to do it. It was bad enough Noiz was making me do it in the first place, but I let him keep a few. His gauges and his snake bites stayed. And one of his tongue rings. And I couldn't take the rings below the belt out. That would've led to some things happening and I couldn't do that with Agatha in the house. Everything else was gone. And he looked weirdly baby faced for a while. But once I got used to it a little more and he started growing his hair out, he looked almost identical to his younger brother. Maybe Theo in about five years. But deep down, I knew exactly who he was. That wasn't changing.

"Koujaku," a sweet, little voice whined, "Have you found her yet?"

"Clear!" I wrapped myself around my favorite little robot, "I haven't seen you in a few months!"

"Congratulations on your manga, Eliza," Clear's precious little face lit up.

"Thank you, honey," I kissed his cheek, "It's kind of nice, you know? Like a family reunion."

"Exactly like a family reunion," Mink joined in, throwing an arm around me, "This is your party, Eliza. What would you like to do?"

I thought it over for a second and Aoba had the right idea, "Let's get bombed!"

And so, we did! The rest of the night was nothing but drinks and shots and more alcohol than what one human being should be able to handle. But it was my party! I could do whatever the hell I wanted! And what I wanted more than anything was to go home and drink with my boys. Everyone was completely trashed except for Mink (because Mink wasn't drinking in the first place. Never was one for that sort of thing.) and for some strange reason, Noiz.

"Hey," I laid my head on my husband's shoulder, "What the hell? The rest of us are drunk. Why aren't you?"

"Ich bin Deutscher, Liebchen," Noiz took a drink, "I have a liver of steel."

"You suck," I giggled, "Hey, Clear!"

"What?" Clear yelled from the living room.

"If I asked you to," I begged, "Would you rewire the entire house?"

"Definitely!" he squeaked, "Why? Do you need me to rewire the house? I'll do anything for you, Angel!"

"No," I let him go, "I don't need the house rewired. Whoever's pouring, cut off the robot."

"Hey there, beautiful," Koujaku tried snaking me away from Noiz, "Why don't you and I go upstairs where it's a little more private?"

"I appreciate the sentiment," I let him down gently, "But I'm married. You're engaged."

"You're no fun," he pouted, "Hey! Where's the little one? Where's Theo? I bet he's into some things."

"No," Noiz stopped him, slamming Koujaku into a wall, "It's bad enough you touched my girl. You touch my little brother and I will end you."

"Relax, Noiz," Koujaku settled him, "I wasn't going to do anything. We were just going to go upstairs and talk. No harm in that, right?"

"Yeah," Noiz scoffed, "Just like how we were going to go upstairs and just talk. I ended up on Angel's doorstep that night."

"So, that's where you ran off to!" Koujaku completely blew me off, throwing an arm around Noiz, "You know, I've always had a fantasy of having a thing with brothers. That sounds like fun. Why do you think I had such a thing for Aoba? Him, me, and Sei would've had a good time."

"Get off me!" Noiz squirmed out of his embrace, "Not happening."

"Koujaku," I took him away, "Where's Aoba now?"

"He's passed out on the floor," Koujaku pouted, "I had hopes of a blow job tonight. Yet, here we are. My dick goes unsucked and I'm guessing you don't have a vacuum cleaner anywhere, do you?"

"We don't have any carpeting."

"You're not the only one with hard wood," Koujaku did another shot and went back into the living room. Granted, this wasn't the night I had in mind, but for some strange reason, this still felt like home. And I wouldn't want it any other way. And it got me reflective.

In the past year, I had written a soon to be bestselling manga. Noiz and I had fully accepted our new identities. We got married in Mink's shop! I even got him to go outside a few times. Just last week, we spent an entire day at the beach! I never would've thought that would've happened. We had friends here and a life together. And his surprise wasn't Morphine coming to royally screw us over.

The next morning, I woke up feeling like a freight train had gone through my skull, but I'd live. Noiz was wrapped around me. I had a coffee pot in the kitchen and a café across the street. I was going to be fine. When I walked downstairs, I looked into the living room and found Mink still asleep on the couch and Aoba and Koujaku all cuddly on the floor. That left two still in the wind. I checked the guest room and found Theo as Clear's little spoon. The whole family was here. And everything was going to be ok. As long as I had them, everything was going to be ok.

 **A/N: And here we have it, kids. The end of His Angel Bunny. I'm really glad I didn't give up on this. I loved writing this story and I love how it ended. It's hard to believe that by this time next week, I'll be writing a new story. This isn't getting a sequel. I didn't leave it open for one. I mean, I'm sure we could go down the Morphine rabbit hole some more, but I'm pretty sure Trip and Virus are long gone. Noiz and Angel are buried too far underground for them to come back. So, thank you for sticking this out with me. And if you don't come back to me after this, happy 2017. I love you. But do keep hanging around. Once the calendars change, my lineup will, too. I'm not putting the fan fiction hat away quite yet. But I'll also be posting more original stuff on, I think, Wattpad. Probably Wattpad. FictionPress is cool, but I'm going to Wattpad for my originals. Fear not, my friends. For I will STILL be posting here. Just different fandoms. I'm taking requests, too, by the way. In case you want me to do a little something, something. And if you're reading this at a later date, no need to be shy. You can still talk to me. I'm not going anywhere. So, I guess I'll see you later. xx**


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